


Calvi Of Neibolt

by MaineCoon_Derry



Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-06
Updated: 2020-06-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:49:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 27,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24044674
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaineCoon_Derry/pseuds/MaineCoon_Derry
Summary: Three to four years after the Losers defeated Pennywise, their town has seemed off, not like it usually is. There was just something ticking under the surface but at the same time it was impossible, there is no way in, by any chance, another being. It starts with simple things, a few glimpses, feeling as if being watched, tricks of the imagination, but maybe...just maybe there is more to than what meets the eye..
Relationships: Ben Hanscom/Beverly Marsh, Bill Denbrough/Mike Hanlon/Stanley Uris, Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier, Neibolt Bill/Neibolt Mike/Neibolt Stan, Neibolt Richie/ Eddie Kaspbrak, Richie Tozier/Neibolt Eddie
Comments: 3
Kudos: 6





	1. Mirrors

It wasn’t anything new, eyes always seemed to be watching, this day wasn’t any different, that slight feeling creeps up his spin while he bikes his way to the woods. It never seemed to falter even when he would try to fall asleep, the others said they felt the same thing but not as often. It was much worse with bathroom mirror then again they were looking at themselves so maybe it was just paranoia. It was something that he couldn’t ever seem to shake off, then again he just decided he was paranoid, he’d be lying if he said they didnt need therapy but they kept the horror to themselves so they didnt sent to some camp or ward for crazy people. A familiar voice came from behind him, “Hello Eds”

“Dont call me that asshat...” Eddie snaps at his best friend, Richie TrashMouth Tozier, his coke bottle gasses resting on his nose and his dark curls had grown a bit since he has refused anyone to cut his “precious” locks. His stupid blue Hawaiian shirt with red and orange Himalayan flowers patterned upon it dod catch Eddie’s eyes. To cut the silence Richie let out a chuckle, god he couldn’t handle silence, let alone have awkward silence with Eddie.

“Eh eh eddie! Rh ruh RIchie!” A familiar call of their unsaid leader, Bill Denbrough, called from a hole in the ground. A girl with fire red hair appeared next to him, she waved frantically but happily, a cigarette in her hand while she waved at them.

“Ill be there I have to take my pills really quick.” Eddie explains seeing Richie dash to the two who duck into the hideout, just in case the goof stumbles. He rolls his eyes seeing his friends disappear to leave him alone above ground, that feeling washes over him again, something was watching him. It felt like when he was little, the only other time, before now, he had felt when something was watching him was a night nearly ten years prior...

_He was only six, he had been sent to bed for not eating his dinner completely, night had already fallen, his eyes had wandered around his room, the shadows seemed to be crawling up the walls with their claws furled to get up. That feeling had fallen over him, his blanket was covering every part of his body but his head so he could see but that only make him worry, what if they knew what he looked like... who was they, he couldn’t remember. The anxiety he felt refused to let his body to look towards the window, his heart had sped up once his mind wandered to darker places in his young mind. Tears had taken lace over his cheeks, the sensation of something observing... watching.. waiting for him to move. His hands had taken a permanent place over his eyes for an unknown reason, fear pooling his stomach creating knots as if to tie him down. The over growing feeling had taken over his body, he felt alone but also not completely, there was no way he could be alone with a feeling of something having its eyes on him. Fear had overdriven his mind, he slowly heard footsteps walk to his bed from behind him, from where the window was..open. Anxiety bolted him down to the bed, unable to move or make a noise, tear sloshed down his face as a silent cry echoed in his mind. He was unable to move, run, scream, nothing he could do but wait for it to touch him. Only for second he saw something, it looked like a shadow, it was walking towards from behind him._

A scream is torn from his lips when a hand touches his shoulder, “Whoa sorry docta K.” a soothing voice calms him down. He wiped away the tears that had welled in his eyes, his heart slowing down to normal. He spun to see Richie, the look on his face was confusion mixed with concern, Eddie shook off any lasting fear from what the memory had brought so he secretly grabs his inhaler and brings it to his lips to take a quick puff, nothing unusual.

“I’m fine just was thinking of something.” Eddie replies giving a half smile, hoping it reassures Richie enough to not prod, but of course Richie would. Much to Eddie’s shock Richie nods as if to understand and not to joke round with it, he gave him a goofy smile which made him shake his head with a short chuckle. 

“Come on the others were worried Vic or Connor caught you.” RIchie snorts getting a slap to his hand that was still on Eddie’s shoulder, but Eddie kicks his bike stand up and lets it sit gently before following the taller male to the clubhouse.

“Ah there he is!” Beverly says throwing her arms around him, she had obviously cut her hair since they last saw her. Eddie smiles gently, his eyes wander over to Ben, who’s face is a tad red with a soft smile, a dark skinned male is sitting on the swing that had recently been renewed to hold them. The hammock was now occupied by Richie, surprisingly it had yet to snap under their weight, however it seemed like everyone had a spot to themselves or with one of the losers, it was domestic and rather mature to have some where to call home. Stan has his place with his binoculars and shower cap on, he refused to get spiders in his hair even if Ben and Mike had checked several times over to see if there was any spiders, there never was, yet Stan refuses to take it off.

“ah Billay boy ah say you aught to get ah book mah boy” Richie snickers making Beverly snort and Stan roll his eyes. Bill took a comic from their shared stash near the hammock, Richie had a marvel comic in his hands which was used as a shield from getting a “Beep Beep.” Beverly went to sit on the ladder to be able to smoke, only for Eddie’s asthma sake, he only used his inhaler if he ever felt anxious but still insisted she had to smoke where they couldn’t get lung diseases. Mike was chatting with Ben about whether or not they should add an extra pole to hold up the ceiling if it ever has too much weight with them under it.Eddie took his laps in Richie’s lap, mostly on his legs facing him. He leans back and puts his legs on either side of Richie, Eddie fumes silently at how tall Richie had grown, hell he was still five feet while Richie has grown to be nearly six, one. A shiver rolls down his spin with the feeling of being watched making the hair on his neck stand up, he sends a quick glance around the room, everyone is doing their own thing or chatting, no one was looking at him until his eyes scan infront of him.

Crystal-blue eyes gleam back at his own, “What are you looking at frog face.” Eddie spat aggressively, he got all worked up over Richie looking at him, he wouldn’t understand why. Richie raises his hands like he just got caught by a cop for doing something illegal, Eddie gave him his infamous glare.

“I’m just wondering why you seem so nervous, you screamed when I touched your shoulder.” Richie says still looking over Eddie’s expression, the boy huffs and kicks Richie’s shoulder getting a whine from the taller male.

“I just feel like something is watching me, it’s probably just post traumatic stress disorder.” Eddie explains to see Beverly turn and nod. They all agreed they would have some PTSD from what happened in the summer of 89’, Bill had it the worst, he would tell them in choppy words that sometimes he could still see or hear his little brother walking around or even one time smiled at him.

It wasn’t long before each had left to go home before sun set, they had defeated the demon who took place in the sewers, but the individual mental toll it took on each of them refused to let them out after night fall. Stan has also had trouble at home for what he said a few years prior at his barmitzfa, so he was grounded for going out after six but he was glad, no way would he got out after then. Beverly happily went back to her aunt’s apartment, her aunt loves her like her own child, so of course Beverly loved to be at home to bake with her. Ben only ever went to the clubhouse, home, or the library, he would always have a book with his, no matter the day or activity, it would help occupy time. Bill would sometimes be alone or with his mother, his father was grieving in the only way he could, aggression. Mrs. Denbrough had taken to therapy and was getting better, but the hole would always be there, nothing could heal a hole from the loss of a child. Bill had found some peace once that clown was gone, but he would never be the same as he once was when Georgie was around. Richie’s parents only had to deal with a brainiac jokester of a child, who told one too many jokes but never tried to piss them off on purpose. Maggie and Went were always understanding of their son, they were strict on not letting him out after night since fear for any more children going missing, after all only two had gone missing over the four to three years since that summer. Eddie still had to take pills to keep his mother’s wraith at bay, she had bolted his window when he came home after running to help his friends, yet it eased him to know nothing would be able to come from the window.

Stan arrives home just in time, his parents gave a nod to him and took him to the dining room, they had and will always eat as a family, no matter what happened or what is yet to come. Stan still pridefully wears his kippah, he only ever takes it off for the quarry or when he has to shower or sleep. His dad would take him to the Synagogue, which was very rarely, but what Stan had done was long gone. However no amount of money or threats would get him to go into the room with the painting, he would never be able to set eyes on the painting or let alone be alone the room without another person to block the painting from view, the oddity of her pale skin and unsymmetrical face had Stan repenting against it, he could never look at a painting in the same way again. 

Bill opens his door when he arrives home, a note of the counter, “Hey honey, your father and I went out with the Tozier’s to meet up with some friends the next town over. Richie can come over if he and you want, dinner is in the fridge see you in the morning or later tonight if you are still awake, love, mom” Bill put the note down and decides he would put his imagination to rest. The chill of the doorknob in his hand as his mind froze, something told him to open it and see what is there, if anything but another thing told him not to. He opens the door slowly but surely, a few toys had to be pushed against to open the door, the only noise was from the creaking under his feet, the chill from the room rolls out and flushes against his skin. A little hope in him died, for some reason, some hope, some wins that Georgie would jump off his bed with the little boat and jump-hug him, but that wouldn’t happen, not ever again and it was his fault, if only he hadn’t pretended to be sick, if only he had gone out to play with his little brother. Bill’s feet scrap the ground a bit as he walks over to the bed, the now fading red and blue stripes on Georgie’s covers reveal in finally feeling someone, the slight whimper came the bed with the weight being settled on it. Bill feels silent tears well up, he misses Georgie so much, he wants his baby brother back, but nothing could change the past. He would have to live with what he wished he had done, what had happened.

He lays back to look at the ceiling, toys untouched in nearly four years are scattered around the room, the covers scrunch under his grasp, he ever so desperately wanted to see or even touch his little brother but that would never come again, or would it. Bill decides to get up and call Richie, he just cant ever stand being home alone without someone around, it just had a different feel, he could never pull himself to open the basement. It was just one o the many things the losers agreed were normal, for them at least..

Richie got home after crashing his bike down in the grass, his parents and him shared the car till he was able to get his own in collage. He went right inside and found the note on the fridge, “Hey kiddo, Mom and I went out with the denbrough’s feel free to go over or stay here or if he wants to come over, your choice, Dinner is in the fridge on the second shelf. From dad.” Richie gave a chuckle, he loved how his dad still called him kiddo even if he is sixteen. Yet he hated when his parents would go out, he always had the fear one day they wouldn’t come back or the door would lock and he’d end up in that room again or his friends would get tired of his joking or maybe.. one day he would get lost and slowly be forgotten. He shook off his thoughts, he still goes to the front door, only to make sure it wasn’t locked, to ease his mind from the goosebumps rolling over his body. His mind wanders back to how Eddie reacted to him touching his shoulder, he felt the pang in his chest from the split second that he thought Eddie screamed because of him, not what Eddie had on his mind, but him.

The town wasn’t the best, yeah he made a “big fuck you” to Derry when he was nearly thirteen, he had carved his and Eddie’s initials on the kissing bridge, he would never tell that short, feisty, asthmatic about how he felt. After all it was a huge slap in the face when he realized his feelings weren’t mutual or best friend, it was so much more. He didnt understand why, for the longest of times, why he would only ever joke about Eddie the most, why he called him Eds, why he loved to have Eddie on his lap or legs in the hammock. His heart nearly stops when a sound rings out, it took him a few seconds to realize its the phone. It frightened him from his little daydream of being able to tell Eddie what and how he feels towards him, but fear will always keep him closeted and horrified of rejection. He gets the phone and somewhat twirls the cord, before Richie could talk Bill starts talking “Richie, I beh eh bet your push parents told yh yh you that they weh went out with mine. Cah can I come over..?” Bill asks and with out question Richie gratefully accepts.

It was odd for some of of the losers, they couldn’t be apart for long stretches of time, they didnt feel whole without eachother, it was as if the blood oath they had made connected them in ways no one else could ever know. Beverly had it worse, her nightmares would get worse but she had her loving aunt who would always sooth her back to sleep, yet it was a large struggle, for her she needed to sleep with Ben’s poem under her pillow to even shut her eyes. They all had taken something from the monster, each one of them had faced their fear but a new one lingers in their minds. Something in their mind made it seem as if someone waswatching them, but that was only their imagination...at least they could only hope. Only two kids had been missing the past summers, but that was different, the kids had run away from home.. at least thats what adults said.

Yet the toll of it all, the amount of children ripped from home, was terrible, but even worse for those who lived to tell the tale. Eddie wasn’t able to look at his mother the same way from what It had shown him in the Pharamcy, Mike couldn’t and he wouldn’t go anywhere near fire or an enclosed room without an easy way out, Richie wouldn’t go near a room if it didnt have windows or a lock on the door nor did he dare to go to the arcade without the losers from fear of Connor, the newest leader of the Bowers gang. Ben was still queasy about going near the kissing bridge or let alone near the back of the library, Bill felt the guilt of being the reason Georgie was gone and how he was a reason why the Loser’s broke up those summers ago. Stan refused to be left alone in a room, he couldn’t do it, especially if it had a painting.

Bill gets to Richie’s house, he quickly got welcomed in. Richie basically slams the door behind Bill, which was odd, Richie couldn’t stand a closed door. Something was off, something was different, Bill saw the absolute shock in the male’s eyes, he noticed the twitch in his hands, his stride was different, he was acting like a scared animal being hunted down. He never acted like this, only Bill and Beverly only ever saw this side of him, he was vulnerable, he let his walls down, the jokes were gone from his lips. “Whu wh what ha ha happened?” Bill questions, a bit worried about Richie, they only ever got really worried when something dangerous happened.

“The mirror... the fucking mirror Bill..” Richie says, his words followed by silence. Bill searches Richie’s face for any sight of a prank,but those wide, blue eyes told it was no prank, what ever happened with a mirror was not a joke. _Maybe it just fell, loose screw..._. Bill tries to tell himself, IT was dead nothing unnatural could be happening anymore, or maybe he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“Wh whu what about th th the mirror?” Bill asks, his eyes going back and forth slowly to watch Richie pace infront of him. The male takes Bill’s hand and leads him to the bathroom, the mirror seemed normal, it wasn’t broken nor did it seem out of place. The older of the two looks at the other with a suspicious expression, Richie gave him a panicked look which froze Bill on the spot. It was sudden but they both felt it, eyes surveying them, it couldn’t be one another, this felt different. It felt as if when you are home alone and the house creaks, the small, panicky feeling swells in their chests, no one else was with them, so why did they feels eyes on them, why did they feel as if something had a hand on either of their shoulders, why did it feel like something was stalking them.

“I know I saw something... it was a hand.. but it wasn’t my reflection, it was like.. i cant explain it. It looked like something out of a movie.. a window.. I think.” Richie kept fumbling with his words, his hands were shaking like if he hadn’t taken his ADHD pills. Bill looks him over, his mind turning, Richie wouldn’t go this far for a prank... would he? He gently took Richie from the bathroom, as the leader he couldn’t let one of his close friends stay with something eating at them inside forever.

“Ih it cuh cuh could have beh been a trick of th th the light.. noh not saying you duh duh du didnt see anything but ih it seems tu tu to be a guh good explaination fu fun fu for now.” Bill explains getting a slight nod from the curly haired male next to him. Richie took his glasses off to clean them and looks down at his hands, he got up and turned on the television set, the sudden static shook up his spin a bit, Bill soothes the hair standing up on the back of his own neck.

“Damn this television is hard to have the screen on..” Richie grumbles and continues to curse under his breath, the tv flicks on to show a cartoon, Voltron. Bill understood why Richie turned it on, noise, it was much too quiet, neither of them could stand quiet.

“Wuh we need to teh teh tell the others tuh t-tomorrow about this...” The older one says getting agreement sigh, RIchie began to wonder if any of the others had any problems similar to the one he had before Bill came over. Richie sat down next to Bill, he had a question to ask Bill but was too afraid to ask him at the moment.

“Have you seen Georgie...lately?” Richie questions wanting to get to a different subject tat would make it all seem less crazy, shooting a look towards Bill to see if he overstepped the moment. Bill looks down, he had, the night before.. behind him in the mirror. He nods seeing Richie’s face, his eyes were judgmental but was it fear or shock, it would be the first time in a full two years from the monthly one he got over the four years. Bill’s shoulders shake giving richie the hint he had, he had seen his brother a few days earlier.

“Richie isn’t it dead...?” Bill asks without a single stutter, it was nerve wrecking when Bill didnt stutter, he was serious about the question, more serious than before. Richie looks at him with a thoughtful look, they shared a single look There isn’t anyway it could possibly be alive....right

“It could be just our imagination overreacting... I mean I cant stay alone in a room for very long but its normal.. for kids who had to fight a fucking demon in the damn sewers.” Richie says trying to lighten up the stomach churning feeling that settled in the room. Bill just nods, he knew that Georgie was just in his mind. He feels terribly guilty, he shouldnt have let him go on his own, but the past is past the only thing to change is the future the ones alive had. Bill looks at his hands, how he remembered he hoped that when they killed that sonuvabitch, Georgie would somehow be alive.. but that didnt happen, he lost his brother forever that one day he slipped up, he lost his brother because of that clown that was now hopefully rotting in the sewers being eaten by the rats thats lived down under.

Beverly had just finished dinner with her aunt, she cleaned the dishes and put them back in the cabinets, she goes to the bathroom to clean up. Beverly froze feeling an odd sensation roll over her, she hadn’t been able to walk into that bathroom since the sink tried to murder her. She shrugs it off, discarding it as only her imagination getting the best of her, she brushes through her short, fire red hair. All the while an uneasy feeling pricking goosebumps into her skin, she watches as her skin rolls with goosebumps, she looks at herself in the mirror seeing just how dirty it was. “Hey Auntie is it alright if I clean the bathroom mirror?” She asks out the bathroom door, her aunt turns down the show so she could reply to her lovely niece.

“That would be nice dearie would you like any help?” Her Aunt asks sweetly, Beverly replies with a simple “No thank you” and goes off to get the supplies from the side closet. The memory of how the boys helped clean the blood stained bathroom came to her, she hoped they didnt just do it because she was a girl, she could do shit herself and fight for herself but it was nice to have a close set of friends to be there for her. She sprays the mirror down to let it set so it would be easier to get the dust and whatever else was on there, she went to the bathtub and starts on the faucets. The sensation of being watched had subtly waned the more she cleaned the bathroom, still she avoided to clean the mirror, she wanted it to be spic and span for her grandmother and herself. She finally decides to clean off the mirror. Goosebumps roll over her skin yet again as if she got caught in a draft from the open window which had wind slightly but it wasn’t enough to truly chill her like she currently is. She wiped a large strip through the mirror, leaving a reflective, shiny surface or so she thought until she leans back to see it.

A shriek is choked in her throat, for only a second she saw, or maybe she thought she saw herself but not her. The imagine burns in her memory even if it was only for a second, the hair shrinking away from the flames that came from a lighter in the hand, who’s skin was dripping like wax. Her eyes drip from the socket as if they were being cooked in oil, the skin on her cheeks were flaking off like ashes from embers on wood,Beverly felt the acid rise to her throat as she suddenly smells the stench of rotting flesh, it hit her like a train. The scent that had flowed in, it smelled like an egg left to rot in the summer sun with fish left to suffer, all sloshed in spoiled milk. The way it reaches down to her bones was all too real, the way it stuck to the roof of her mouth like peanut butter, it seems to clutch onto her skin with the force of a beartrap. Beverly stumbles back, the scent still swirling in her mind as she slips on the wet floor to the ground, hard. Her torso hits the ground first followed by a sharp, migraine ache that licks up her back to her head when she hits the tiled floor, the face is all she could see, her distorted, awful face looming over her. A light flashes on and last thing she could feel was someone picking her to take her from the room, her eyes shut with the pain rolling into her mind from the impact. The mirror going uncleared set aside for that one spot she had cleaned, the question lingering like smoke that refused to leave a piece of clothing _Was it just a trick of her imagination...or more?_


	2. The Trees Are Laughing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> His feet thunder over the rough ground desperate to find the being to the voice, from his side view he saw a tree, a dead tree which froze him to the spot. The forest gone silent, much too silent, not a single bird chirped, the silence creeps to his skin making it roll like snakes in a pit. He looks towards the tree, It was soft but it could be heard, the unmistakable giggling coming from the tree.

The sun slowly rose into the sky, the fiery ball laying waste t the shadows that dared to drip from their hiding places. The light gaining its rule in the sky as if to ban the shadows for its ruling, a low grunt rolls in the room when the sun reaches their eyelids to wake them up. Bill sat up, something felt off, like when one of them would go out of town for a few days or be home sick. Bill looks around the room to find Richie asleep on the floor with a blanket over him, His parents must have came home late... Bill slowly realizes he also had a blanket on him.The male gets up and leans down to the other, he shook his shoulders a bit roughly getting a groan, “Richie Wuh Wuh wake up.” he says to the boy who opens his eyes.

Richie scrunches his nose and squints trying to see, Bill takes Richie’s glasses from their place on the table to put them in his face. The boy shakes his head and Bill wishes Richie wouldn’t make so many jokes, “I see you slept with me eh?” Richie jokes getting a heavy sigh from the other male.

“Buh buh beep beep rih Richie.” Bill grumbles hating how he could honestly be so inappropriate even just when he wakes up, yet he did notice how Richie looks down.

“Something feels off...” Richie says looking at Bill, as if to confirm he felt the same, they got up off the floor to find Maggie, a sweet woman with dark hair and beautiful eyes, baking in the kitchen.

“Hello boys! I didnt want to wake either of you so I let Mrs. Denbrough know you could stay the night. Also I’m making toast if either of you want.” Maggie Tozier smiles at them getting smiles in return. Bill stretches with a yawn, there is was, being watched, that awful feeling of being a small, vulnerable animal just awaiting for whatever was after them to catch up.

“Thank you ma, is it alright if we eat on the go?” Richie questions look at his mom, she gives a soft chuckle at how messy his hair is. She ruffles his hair sweetly with a nod and then looks at Bill with a soft expression.

“Yes, as long as you both change your clothes, Bill your mother left a change of clothes on Richie’s bed.” Maggie says to see both boys scramble up the stairs to get to Richie’s room. _Boys will be boys_. She smiles to herself, she jumps a little when the TV turns on.

“RICHIE THAT ISN—-“ Her voice dies in her throat when she turns to see no one near the TV, but it was on, playing a cartoon. Richie dashes down hearing his name, he still had on his jeans and his new Hawaiian shirt barely on him when he reaches the bottom of the steps, Maggie turns to him and shakes her head.

“Nothing dear, just a small electrical malfunction...” His mother explains walking to the TV to turn it off, missing Richie’s startled expression. He runs back up to find Bill fully dressed and ready to go, Richie’s eyes were wide, they share a look _We need to get with the others._

The two boys get downstairs to find Maggie holding out two plates with toast on it, “I hope you boys stay safe and have a fun day!” She says when they take the toast bolting to the door. Richie goes back and gives his mom a kiss on the cheek, she gives him a smile and ruffles his hair again.

“Thanks ma.” Her son grins and dashes to the door to find Bill on Silver, the bike’s silver hues glinting under the light from the sky. Richie picks his bike up to get on it, being left unsaid to who they were going to get first but they both knew exactly who to get. The summer heat growing a bit but it wasn’t unbearable, the sun still keeping away whatever lurks in the shadows.

The two reach a building leading up to the apartments, both boys nearly side crash into eachother when they pull over to stand their bikes up. Bill felt his hair stand on end, the last time they even entered the apartment was when. Richie opens the main entrance, for they didnt have to fear the wraith of a devilish father, Bill follows but his mind wasn’t in the time, he tilts his head back as if he was reliving the past yet again, _Beverly had come to them, she was nervous because of her father, that nasty man, he was too touchy with his daughter and was well over stepping father- daughter boundaries. Richie was left out side in case her father came back, he had a loud mouth that wouldn’t ever shut up so it would be easy to distract him. Beverly had lead them into a blood ridden bathroom, the walls covered in the sickly liquid that was starting to churn their stomachs from the way it was clinging to the walls for dear life._

Bill shook his head to rid the memory before the new one came in, the one where he found Beverly went missing, that stomach twisting fear grips him. _History wouldn’t repeat itself.... would it?_ Bill wonders to himself as he follows Richie up the stairs, they shiver a bit despite the heat that leaked into the building upon their entrance. They reach Beverly and her Aunt’s apartment, Richie knocked a small, short tune, both going dead silent to hear if anyone was inside. Nothing, not a creak, not a ruffle of clothes, not footsteps to get up to answer, no telltale sound, they couldn’t hear anything, however their spite would be short lived, they didnt know what they were expected but wanted something. Silence began to break down their hope, it wasn’t terror that sat inside their chests. Then, as if just on the edge of hearing they could hear a small sound, it sounded like giggling, like one would experience on Halloween, how kids would be giggling at ghouls or at each other’s costumes to gather the most candy. Yet the giggling froze the blood in their veins, it wasn’t a child from one of the rooms, it was near them, as if right behind them.

They felt themselves being bolted to the spot with frozen terror, the oddity of how the giggling seemed to be around them, on them, it only seemed to grow thicker, the hair standing up on the back of their necks as something seemed to be breathing on the back of their neck. Another sharp giggle followed by a deathly laugh, no it wasn’t a child’s laugh yet it wasn’t adult, it seems familiar but strange, it held the sickly sweetness of getting a trick rather than a treat. Another giggle ripples the hallway, this time it set a churn in their stomachs, it no longer sounded gleefully nor happy, the way it somehow made their lips seal as if hot taffy was poured on them. The final giggle spun them around, a tainted wood frame was attached to the wall with a picture of a tree, _Odd.. why would an apartment complex want that_.. Both their noses scrunch up as they surveyor the picture, half of the picture had half of a burned tree with its background having a red, gradient style to its background while the other half had half of the tree but instead of being burned it was lively and green leaves displayed like wings of a butterfly, the background a much more appealing sky blue gradient style to it. A short but high yelp leaves the other male’s lips once the door opens, Bill stands frozen a bit scared about how long they were standing there or if they had actually heard what they did, just their imagination... _hopefully..._

“Hello, sorry for not responding sooner, Beverly wanted me to get her some soup.” Beverly’s aunt smiles at the two boys, unknowing to their pounding hearts or to the soft relief snaking in their veins. Richie gives a smile to Bill, yet the giggling still remain in their heads, it wasn’t normal to hear giggling like they had.

Beverly’s aunt lead the boys inside to Beverly’s room, the female laying on her bed in her usual overalls with an undershirt. She smiles at the two warily, she had an ice pack on the back of her head, it wasn’t fully ice it had some melting slush to it. “Are yuh yuh you okay?” Bill asks sitting on the edge of the bed while Richie walks around, he couldn’t sit down he forgot the ADHD pill again but it wasn’t the cause if the giggling, the oddity of how time slowed when they heard it. Beverly’s aunt led them to talk, Beverly made sure she was out of ear shot before she starts talking.

“I was cleaning the bathroom because I needed to do something so I did just that.. I hadn’t realized I had gotten water all over the floor from cleaning the bath tub. I wanted to clean the mirror last so it would easily get the grim off of it, but I saw something in the mirror. It was only there for a second, it looked like me.. but I was burning...” Beverly says, her voice was softer and a bit nervous to even recite it. Richie looks at her than Bill, it wasn’t hard to notice it, Beverly looks at the two boys confused.

“I saw something in the mirror... and before we came here.. when we knocked their was giggling... and a painting outside your door.” Richie explains but sees her confusion, Bill looks at her wondering why she was looking at them like that.

“There isn’t a painting.. there’s only a mirror outside the door..” Beverly replies feeling the two boys’ blood freeze, they look at eachother to jump up. Bill calms himself down, he couldn’t be afraid, not infront of his friends, he had to be brave for them.

Beverly dashes ahead of the two boys, ignoring the slight bruising pain on her back and head, “Beverly you cant be running like this you could get hurt again.” Her aunt warns. Beverly nods as if to say _I will be safe._ Her aunt sighs as the trio bolts out of the apartment, the tree in the wooden frame was gone only to leave behind a reflective surface to show the paleness digging at their faces. A chortled laugh, a familiar one, so familiar but it sounded hollow as if to be in a cave, it seemed to be said from a mouth filled with the goo that twinkies are filled with, yet it sent goosebumps to rule their skin.

“We have to get the others now.” Beverly demands running down the hall followed quickly by the two boys, they grab their bikes and the ginger quickly going to the back to grab her bike. They rode like the wind down the streets, first to grab Stan, then Ben, then Eddie, finally the group riding down to the farm only to be stopped when Mike was biking down the road.

“Guys what’s going on?” Mike asks a bit shocked that his friends were going to find him, he saw the fear on three of their faces but confusion on the others. Beverly just waves for him to follow and fast, with the solemness of the group it chills each one of them, the town was silent, it was always silent but this.. this was a new silence.

Bill leads the others to the library, they needed to see if anything, any book, any scrap paper, a scientific explanation, anything to understand. Stan gave them a weird look, “I’m not going into there until you tell us what is going on.” He demands, last time they trusted Bill he got his face nearly bit off. Bill looks at Richie and Beverly with a sigh, they had to explain it or the others wouldn’t follow.

“There was something in the mirror, it looked like it wanted to bring me into the mirror.. as if it was an open window no a mirror..” Richie explains leaving out the insane giggles, Stan and Eddie look at one another, knowing Richie this could be just some huge prank that he somehow got Bill and Beverly to do.

“He’s not lying. I fell backward and hit my head when I was cleaning the bathroom.” Beverly adds on, she had no cheerful tone one would find if someone is joking, she was looking deadpanned at them. Eddie looks between Bill, Beverly, and Richie, they weren’t joking which made his lungs tighten fearfully, he scrambles in his fancy pack to grab his inhaler. The mist flows down his throat, even if it was a placebo, it calms him down enough or at least enough to listen.

Stan looks at Ben and Mike, “well...” he asks them to see if they believe it, but Beverly wouldn’t just go along with Richie, he looks over Bill’s face, he was pleading with Stan in silent words. Ben walks over to the trio, he believes them, mostly Beverly, Mike looks at the noddle hair boy, he walks to Bill.

“Okay.. Ill come, but if.. I swear if we have to fight another ungodly, thousand year old demon clown I am leaving.” Stan says with a small smile upon his lips, Bill gets a soft smile and heads into the library followed by the other Losers. Ben took the lead to one of the sections, he was assisted by Beverly and Mike which he told to look for “Derry’s History” as well as a book on “FolkLore” 

Richie grins seeing a book he could use as material, “Hey eds. Eds.. EDS” he grins with that stupid, overly large grin he only ever used when he was going to tell a joke, or at least one directed towards Eddie. The asthmatic looks at him confused not seeing the book that the taller male is holding behind his back, but he saw that smug grin and glared a bit as if to dare him to say what he has in store.

“How about we ditch these losers and study this together~” The curly haired male smirks holding up a “Human Autonomy” book, Eddie stares at him take a deep breath ready to shoot his mouth off at the boy but he heard Beverly’s snort a bit. The asthmatic rolls his eyes and doesnt bother with retaliation, he just sighs taking the book from Richie and putting it back on the shelf, much to Richie’s disappointed expression. Mike takes out an old, leather bound book from the shelf, Ben gave a nod of affirmation, none of the others paying attention to the duo, who now were just annoying eachother.

They didnt spend but thirty minutes in the library, Ben having the history book under his arm, they walk out of the white doors a little unsuccessful since the folklore book they wanted to find has been checked out at least a week before. The group gets on their bikes to go to the clubhouse, once they get to the edge of the forest they hide their bikes before crossing the Barrens since they had gone a different way than usual. Beverly leads followed quickly by Ben, Stan, Bill, Mike, Eddie, and finally Richie, it felt odd to be crossing this part of the Barrens, at least they knew it was a way to the clubhouse. The trees seem to move while they walk to the clubhouse which Ben had marked with a large stick, which a third was stuck in the soft, earthy soil that lay around the whole forest. It was underneath he surface, barely noticeable, but it crawls under their skin, they felt it again, not as much one of the trio’s had felt looking in the mirror that held a grip upon the wall across Beverly’s apartment. Not a laugh, not a giggle, not even a breath held sound among the woods, it felt like a graveyard, the way they could be walking down to a grave they could be buried in, the ease of how the ceiling could fall, how a tree might just crash upon the opening leaving them to starve and rot in an earthy coffin.

“This could shed some light but I would highly doubt it,dont get your hopes too high.” Ben says putting the large book upon on of the crates they had. Something deep down in them was screaming at them, pleading with them, inviting them to open the book as if whatever it was knew they wouldn’t find shit, they knew that but it would give them a sort of settled feeling, to know it wasn’t another being, another IT. Ben flips through the pages finding the Easter Disaster embedded in it’s pages, the kid’s head stuck in between two branches, the circus that failed. Nothing on mirrors or paintings.. then again why would there be, its not like anyone would write about hearing odd laughs or giggles or seeing things in mirrors, it would be something one is sent away for.

Eddie began to slowly worry, the panic first crawls down his throat coating it like a slick goo, it felt like he couldn’t breath from the way it, it felt like he swallowed gallons of gasoline..no something with the consistency of pen ink which felt like it was filling up his throat. He tries to swallow to a dry throat, it was getting rougher and rougher to breathe, he licks his lips trying to rid them of the dryness. Richie turns to Eddie noticing how much the boy was licking his lips, “Hey Eds I could, you know, help you with those dry lips.” Richie grins, winking at Eddie. The targeted boy, however had a flushed face from the comment, wasn’t having it, his body felt gross and most of all, not his own. He strides to the ladder and climbs up it without a word, Richie looks at the others with a perplexed expression.

The asthmatic reaches the safety of the top ground, the revolting slick which felt as if it was coating his throat like one would get if hey hadn’t had any water in days. The feeling did seem to fade the further he travels from the clubhouse, he was getting rather fatigued despite having barely done anything. The way his eyelids weigh down his eyes as if he hadn’t slept in days, which wasn’t true, he had been sleeping perfectly for over a year, why was he feeling so tired, so... dizzy. He hums a small tune to hopefully rid himself of it, _Trees, trees, trees, trees to my left.. trees, trees, trees to my right, trees trees trees, trees to my front, trees, trees, trees, trees to my back._ Somehow it seems to calm him down, the slick feeling in his throat disapperated, the dizziness faded to the haziness in the back of his mind.

“Maybe I should go check on him..” Richie suggests, it had been over five minutes since Eddie had left without a word, Beverly shrugs while Bill, Ben, and Mike look over the book for any hidden clues or any glued together pages. Stan was looking over the trio’s shoulders not paying attention to anyone else, so the fire haired girl looks at Richie and just nods, _Just go and bring him back.._ she seems to say with her eyes. In a blink the male bolts to the ladder and nearly falls back down from jumping up the ladder, the second he reaches the ground he felt it, that underlaying feeling, he couldn’t pinpoint what it was.. fear? Nerves? Wonder? No. It was more deep, like when bitten by a wild animal, it felt off. Richie calls out for Eddie, his voice echoes in the forest, ringing out to silence, his brows furrow, _Would Eddie just leave like that?_

A giggle rips through the quiet, the sun shining brightly through the top canopy of leaves. “This isn’t fucking funny Eddie.” Richie calls shakily, getting no reply, his heart picking up, could have he run into Connor or Vic.. they did prowl around looking for vulnerable kids after all, but who else would be this deep inn the forest. His skin heats up like embers, his heart pounding in his throat, WHERE IS EDDIE he panics running through the forest to lay his fears to rest. Richie gets to the Barrens, his glasses providing no easy sight to see how many bikes were on the other side, he sucks it up and crosses the rocks. All bikes are accounted for... he pauses to think and dashes across the barrens yet again, slipping a few times to soak his shoes in the water accidentally.

“RICHIE!!!!” A voice suddenly rolls through the forest, Richie perks up and runs towards it, silent eyes watch as he strides past. His feet thunder over the rough ground desperate to find the being to the voice, from his side view he saw a tree, a dead tree which froze him to the spot. The forest gone silent, much too silent, not a single bird chirped, the silence creeps to his skin making it roll just like snakes would roll in a pit. He looks towards the tree, It was soft but it could be heard, the unmistakable giggling coming from the tree. The limbs were blackened like ink, something dripping off it like it was being burned from acid, the bark dripping like water from the tree, a smell of rotting flesh and skin being sizzled from chemicals. A soft giggle burst from beside him making his nerves spark, whoever it was scared the bird away, and it seemed like it wanted to do the same to him.

His name, he heard it, it was his name in a hushed whisper nearly covered by the giggles, the soft, heat like glow of red from beyond the tree, every limb seemed ghoulish, gruesome, dying. Hushed giggles were moving around him, it grew softer but also deepened in tone, it struck him to his very core. The tree seemed to gain faces on its limb, they seem familiar, like the giggling but he couldn’t make it out. He was too busy looking over the limbs to see something move from behind it, whatever it was giggles again but this time it was hollow, he couldn’t move, there was something wrong with it. Much too deep, much too low, much too... dead, panic seizes him in its jaws, the taint of blood slightly stung his nostrils, laughter fills his ears. This could be his imagination, he must be really fucked up to be seeing this, if it was his imagination, _that cant be right can it?_ That’s when the tree’s branches move as if to be one’s shoulders when laughing, the low rumbling laugh like when one had finally scared a little one on Halloween, the dark and maniac laughter nearly covers up a sound. The other trees around join in, to be laughing at him, like they pulled a trick, a devilish and malicious prank. It chills the blood in his veins once the laughing gets deeper, darker, psychotic. The air began to chill even if it was the middle of summer, the coolness swirls around the forest like a ghost looking for a body to possess. And yet, despite how fearful he was to see the tree, the same one from the picture, the same one he saw behind the figure in the mirror, the one thing that truly burns, the one thing that ate every nerve in his body, the one thing that was worse than rotting flesh, the thing that was worse than the trees, the trees laughing the only thing that could truly scare the fuck out of him. A scream, high pitched, frightened, as if an animal had been caught and bitten into, the way it echoes among the trees, the way how it seems so hurt, yet the scream didn’t scare him, it was who it was from.. “EDDIE!!!!”


	3. Fate Worse Than Death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beverly stops dead in her racks, the others nearly falling on eachother from the sudden action, each one of their pupils turn to pinpricks to see what lay infront of them, their eyes start from a thick layer of some sort of blackened sap and a foot layer of water, or so they thought was water, they felt the air settle unnaturally, it was so wrong, it was out of a nightmare

Eddie’s mouth hangs open in a silent scream, the sound had left but then his throat fills with a licorice black slick that starts crawling up his throat to the back of his mouth. His dark, hazel eyes blown wide in petrified terror, the trees, oh god, the trees bent and swayed making everything start to spin to distract him. While the trees made the world tilt like one would feel on a small boat in a hurricane, the ground moves under his feet such as would a snake would move, thats when he saw it. The figure walking from behind one, unmoving tree, the limbs rose and fell as if it was alive, breathing, sighing. A giggle ripples from the figure’s mouth, its face was shrouded by the darkness the trees created, the way it walks towards him match that of his own, if only he could move. _RUN, IDIOT RUN, DO SOMETHING, MOVE!!!_ His mind screams at him but he couldn’t, his legs were tensing up not allowing such actions to take place. Eddie’s hope was dying with each passing moment, every step the stranger took, ever chuckle that burns into his memory. The wind had started to pick up, water began to leak from the leaves of the trees, but the drops were pregnant with far more disturbing terrors. Drops of water hit his hair and slides down his tan skin, leaving blackened streaks behind in their wake. Fog slowly rolls across the ground, like hands digging against the earthy soil followed by childish giggle, it wasn’t hushed however it was hollow, sounding as if yelled in a canyon with a slight echo in return. Eddie’s eyes left the figure, for only a second, just enough to see what is falling on him, his mouth widens in another scream that couldn’t escape his lips, but what did come up was a lurch.

He hunches over starting to heave, skin, human skin was leaking on his body _HOLY FUCK I COULD GET AIDS.. oh my god Its FUCKING SKIN._ He nearly throws up at the though, at the situation. Small, butchered pieces of skin tissue, all pink and fresh... the blood was thick as if it had once been mixed with cotton candy, the blood began to dissolve into his skin. His body heaves harshly, nothing came up, nothing except black spit, it burns his lips, like one would if a marshmallow is still on fire being out in a mouth, it travels down his chin, only to leave his skin as if it was taking parts of his face and flesh with it. The goop lands with a sickly wet plop to the ground, his heart was thrashing in his chest but came to a dead stop when a finger lays rest under his chin. Eddie’s face is forced up while the ink burns his mouth and face, his breathing was choppy and dying, he needed air, he couldn’t breath. A face, tan and hazel eyes look back at him, a nightmare brought to life, his brain short circuited to see it, him.. another giggle churns the air, a child like song ascending in the air, not from the being infront of him, but from children... the other children. The same brunette hair, the same hazel eyes, the same tan skin, the same ink dripping from his mouth and eyes. The being grins making ink spill from his mouth like a waterfall, it cascades down his chin only making the tan flesh dirty, the thing’s skin was darker with muck around his eyes and cheek as if he had been buried in dirt, his hands.. his hands were normal until the tips of his fingers, the skin faded to black claws with blood dripping from the points. Eddie stares in horror at the eyes, they were changing.. the being’s pupil’s began to slowly split, as if it was oil in water, the way the pupils move without the iris following. The way it became one, two, then three black pupils swirling in each eye, wanting to hypnotize him, wanting to distract him, wanting to take him. It spun Eddie around to face away from him, its claws dug into his soft, tan skin on his neck, Eddie didnt dare move for fright of his throat being slit, but it wouldn’t be the worst thing. The ink in his throat had slipped down his stomach burning and felt as if it was eating his insides away like maggots, enjoying the chewy entrails, the soft, pink organs that taste like sugar, eating away at his squishy inside tissue. He could feel the small, worms and ink drip into his lungs, a hand, having the gunk overflowing the fingers is stuck over his open mouth, the new ink being shoved down his throat by the hand, tears flow from Eddie’s eyes when he tries to scream against the hand. That’s when he realized it, the harshness of it, the absolute nightmarality of it, his eyes shut to let his body go pliant, his muscles completely limp. His blood stills when he hears a jaw being unhinged to bite into his skin just below his shoulder blade as if he was a piece of cake, a soft fondant layer over moist, wet red velvet layers that drips with sickly sweet, red, liquid sugar. It licks its own lips to savor the delicious flavor that fills its mouth to mix with the black slosh in a disgusting yet satisfying fashion, his blood gushes from the bite.

Eddie lets out a ear piercing scream, ink and blood flying from his mouth and trickles down his chin despite the hand trying to silence him, the pain rockets through his body like one would feel if struck by lightening. His blood leaks down his back from the open bite mark, his hands shake from the bloodstream coming from the bite. The being roars behind him to hear the scream that was leaving Eddie’s lips, the air moves suddenly and his head is connected with the ground, the figure standing over him menacingly. “That’s the last scream you will ever sing from those lips..” the voice his own, but deeper, hollow, decayed, threatening, Eddie’s vision hazes over from the blood and air lose, with the ink choking him to death with the maggots chewing his insides away like a meal and the new wound leaking, unable to stop the bleeding itself from the severity of it. The being gets down to pin Eddie to the filth covered floor, but the germaphobe couldn’t careless, he knew was going to die, either way he would die and one would be slow or quick, but this time he didnt care, his mind was going fuzzy while his body just lay limp, not wanting to move nor could any part move. Hands, clawed hands, one pins his chest down and the other grabs the side of his face, the devilish grin leers over him, the three pupiled eyes look down at him with such a predatory success like he had just caught the prize winning prey.   
“Are you going to kill me...?” Eddie somehow gets out, as if it allowed him one last question, as if it wanted to hear what he asked, the last question as of it still had humanity left in it’s mind, Eddie looks at the other’s eyes, he didn’t see that hate or murderous glare, he saw regret, sadness, pain, the being DIDNT want to do what he was about to, those eyes held grief. It shook its head an growls angrily, the grief left its eyes as if he was losing a battle in its own mind, one between of its own and another controlling it.

“Your fate is worse than death... too bad your friends wont be able to save you this time....” the being says, it’s voice was shaky as if it had finally lost to the insanity..he felt something.. It wasn’t slow, it was fast, faster than expected and he couldn’t do anything about, he knew what was happening seconds before it happened, his body knew there was nothing to stop it from coming, that’s when he heard it yet he knew it was the last sound he would ever hear, “EDDIE!!!” Richie.. A snap, his airway cut instantly, a face cave up in his vision, not the one above him, not his mother, not Ben nor Beverly, not Bill, not Stan, not Mike... dark curls and a pale face, Crystal blue eyes sparkle down at him, the overly wide smile and at that moment he realized it much too late, how he wished he had more time to tell the boy, but his body went limp, not feeling, not breathing, not moving, not living, not responding, everything was black and quiet.

Richie crashes through the forest, the screams had stopped, it was dead silent, his voice getting horse from yelling, a figure appears infront of him, Beverly followed by Ben, Bill, Mike, and Stan. “Who was screami...” Ben’s words die in his throat to see Richie’s horror shocked expression, no one else accompanying him. Beverly stares at the male in shock, she saw his hands shaking and his blue eyes filled to the brim with fear, little streaks of tears drip down his cheeks.

The group runs off yelling for their lost friend at the top of their lungs, he was nowhere to be seen, but they could hear something, it was so faint a dog could hear it yet it kept getting louder as they seem to get closer. It was moving, the voice was moving, it was Eddie’s voice, “RICHIE! BEN! BILL!” His voice rolls through the forest turning them deeper in the ever growing trees that were only getting thicker and having more branches than a normal tree would, the scene, the dead tree kept repaying in Richie’s head. Something was behind it, something was going to scare him or kill him.. _what if it got Eddie..?_

Beverly tracks ahead ignoring the voice, her brain was telling her to ignore it, to not let it lead them, that all the voice was is a trick, a lie, a fake. The ground seems to tremble as she leads them away from the voice, against Richie’s cursing at her, it seemed so mad that they weren’t following the voice. Eddie’s voice kept whimpering over and over again, ever so slowly the pitch would change with a hollow echo in it, the way it got deeper, more demented, more like a copy of Eddie’s voice. Beverly perks up to hear a slight coughing form the other direction of the voice which had now erupted into an angry scream, Stan and Mike look at eachother along with Ben, they didnt hear anything besides the pitter patter of their feet thundering on the ground.

Beverly stops dead in her racks, the others nearly falling on eachother from the sudden action, each one of their pupils turn to pinpricks to see what lay infront of them, their eyes start from a thick layer of some sort of blackened sap and a foot layer of water, or so they thought was water, they felt the air settle unnaturally, it was so wrong, it was out of a nightmare. Richie scream of his best friend’s name rises as he rushes over the sticky leaves and water that was unnaturally freezing like ice, he sunk to his knees while his heart went numb. Beverly rushes to his side getting the body out of the water, it seems as if something from a true nightmare, the body was dead weight like a bag of dead leaves, their eyes scan over the scratches lay over the tan skinned neck and flushed arms,Stan felt as if he was going to be sick while Ben quickly went over to help get the boy away from whatever he was laying in. It was very wrong, no it was worse than wrong, it was unreal, their friend couldn’t be dead, no thats not right, no. There’s no way, it wasn’t possible, it just wasn’t.

Beverly put a hand on Richie’s sobbing form as he held the body to rid it of whatever liquid had gotten inside him, Stan leans into Mike to try and rid his mind of the sight, he remembered when he went off on his own, when he got attacked.. by that mother fucking monster, but it was dead.. the only explanation he could conjure was Connor, that boy was an exact copy of Henry.. Mike holds Stan gently, Ben furrows his brows and presses two fingers against the body’s neck, his heart jolts feeling an underlying pulse, it was so faint and each beat was further apart than a normal human’s.. but it was there nonetheless. “WE NEED TO GET HIM SAFE.” Ben demands taking over to see their shocked expressions, Richie immediately picks up Eddie, water and another substance flowing from the boy’s mouth, a soft yet raspy wheezing rolls from the boy’s nose. Not a single one had noticed just how quiet the forest became, not a single chirp from a bird or cricket, not a rustle of wind, not a single noise.

They reach the Tozier’s house in record time, of course they had gotten a few odd looks, tear streaked faces and monotone expressions, one being carried in one of their baskets passed out, that’s what others thought but the group knew it wasn’t true. “MOM DAD” Richie nearly screams, the two adults rush down the stairs nearly freezing at the sight, their son, sobbing over something in his arms, Maggie immediately took Eddie from him and got him to the bathroom, Wentworth looks at the teens with a _What the fuck happened to him?_

Beverly and Bill take turns talking about what happened, well a fibbed version, leaving out the voices or the unnatural ordeals they have been victims to, it wasn’t hard to lie that Eddie had tripped and tumbled down, knocking himself out and fell into a deep puddle while they were playing hide and seek in the woods, it was convincing enough to not get Eddie sent to the hospital. Meanwhile upstairs, Maggie, Richie, and Ben start giving CPR to the small boy to get the liquid from his lungs, “Tip his head up at an angle, when I tell you to give him a breath.” Maggie instructs, her voice wasn’t sweet or angry, she was serious as hell, she always thought Eddie as her own son and this.. this was shear terror for her. Richie nods and tips Eddie’s head back at an angle, his fingers tangle in the boy’s brunette hair, knotted with whatever he was laying in. Ben keeps his fingers on the male’s pulse point on his wrist, counting every beat, Maggie kept pressing hard against Eddie’s chest getting the sick liquid from the boy’s throat and lungs, the wheezing was lessening but she wasn’t afraid of that, she was worried that if the boy would start choking upon the liquid.

Wentworth listens to the explanation, Mike has his arms around Stan and Bill, this ordeal has shook them deeply, “You kids did the best thing to bring him here. Other kids would have left their friends and run to get help, you are all a strong bunch of friends, that boy is lucky to have you all as close friends,I don’t think we will have to take him to the hospital unless he remains unconscious for much longer..” Went say looking at the four teenagers. A small, almost missable but it was there on their faces, hell if he only knew how close they were.

“Eddie.” Richie gasps as the boy coughs up a load of gunk and goes limp, something was wrong, more than just the liquid, it froze the blood in their veins, the boy’s neck seemed to be bruised ina way as if it was broken, his skin was ice cold, When had it become so cold.. so dead? Ben slowly felt the pulse slow and near to a stop but it didnt purely stop, Maggie stops her pattern seeing Richie break down completely. “Ben be a dear and grab went to make some food for all of you, Richie and I will clean him up and let him rest, getting hit in the head and knocked out is painful.” Maggie says giving him a smile, checking the boy’s head to find a bump that seemed to be the “cause” of him being unconscious, not realizing it was a white lie they had told her.

Ben nods and rushes downstairs, Richie gets up and goes to his room, he quickly forces his drawers open so he grabs a pair of boxers, soft pants and a shirt he hoped Eddie would like, why would he care if Eddie likes it or not, what if he never woke up.. a reason which only a sliver of him held onto, Hope, he could only wish and hope the small boy laying on the bathroom floor would wake up, open those beautiful doe eyes as if it never happened.

“Here mom..” Richie barely gets out in a whisper from his sore throat from crying on the way home, he lays the clothes on the title to see his mother, ever so gently rubbing off Eddie’s face with a wet towel. The boy’s skin was still cold to the touch, like ice, he was on the brink of death, the air was solemn and broken as if one had lost a dog or a forever love to something so horrible one could never get over it.

Maggie turns hot water in the shower, “I want you to get him warm, I will go help Went and Ben with food for you kids..” she says not at all missing the absolute heart broken, lost look in her son’s eyes as if he was no longer on earth but deep in his own mind, not mentally there but physically, she saw all the joyful, joking shine was gone, no it was completely wiped from those eyes her son had. He gets a nod out and watches her shut the bathroom door, the second she did Richie let out an angry shout, he felt like it was his fault, that he had made Eddie go away from them with his joke, that he made Eddie so uncomfortable that he went out and accidentally end up hurt, no not hurt, dying. RIchie felt like a shell, a ruined, broken shell as he scoops the limp, freezing cold body of his best friend, wait that wasn’t right, he knew the boy to him wasn’t just a best friend, it wasn’t hard to see how Richie would only joke about Eddie’s mom, called him Eds, how he always wanted to be around the asthmatic. Without a bother for getting his clothes wet, he got Eddie’s shirt off and left the boy’s shorts on, he steps in the shower fully clothed absolutely gripping to the boy. The warm water hit the two blissfully, Richie slumps to sit on the floor of the shower with Eddie against his chest and in his lap. The small boy was silent and cold against him, not moving at all besides for only a very small rise and fall of the chest every few minutes, he wasn’t alive but at the same time wasn’t dead yet.

Maggie walks down the steps to see the teenagers sip the coco, eyes turn to her noticing neither of the boys were with her but heard the shower. “Bill can you help me call Eddie’s mother. I dont exactly trust she wont absolutely go bat shit on us.” Maggie says as the boy nods and gets up, they had been scolded by Mrs. Kaspbrak once and that was enough for a lifetime. It was a simple lie, Bill would ask Sonia Kaspbrak if Eddie could stay over even if it wasn’t near mid day nor anywhere near night.

Richie got himself to a mind state to being able to help clean off Eddie, he ran his fingers, coated in shampoo to rid the brunette’s hair of any nature or whatever the shit was in his hair, he watches the gunk come off in blobs out of the brunette locks. Richie’s eyes narrow in on a bite on the soft skin of Eddie’s back when he slightly leaned the boy forward to get the back of his hair, it was deep enough to be from an animal but the shape was questionable, he would tell him mother once they got out. The glass upon his glasses fogged up with the heat from the water, Richie felt his heart stay numb, his emotions seemed frozen as he washes the shampoo from the boy’s hair gently, he was careful to not get any in the shut eyes. Richie gently cleans the dirt and muck from Eddie’s neck to see the bruises weren’t as deadly as thought, more of as if he had somehow fell and lightly bruised his neck, same with the scars, it seems as if the gunk and dirt and piled up causing an illusion to be worse than they were. Richie finally, but extremely carefully and with great care, more than he had ever exerted into anything, cleans the bite with soap to see gunk leak down his back with blood, he realized it hadn’t stopped bleeding, he had blood on his pants and there was a pool on the title. “MOTHER!!” He shouts out of pure worry and a thought, a single horrified question How much blood has he lost..

Maggie immediately dashes up the stairs to the bathroom, she was surprised to find Richie fully clothed in the shower but saw the blood, she let out a gasp. Maggie nearly broke the mirror on the cabinet as she opens it to get the med kit, “Get him out and dry him off.” She says not missing a beat. Richie does as he is told quickly. The boy still unconscious was dead weight in his arms as he dries the boy off, his own clothes soaking wet. Richie sits down with Eddie’s back to face Maggie, she takes a second to survey the wound and immediately gets out a medicine in a bottle. She saw the look in her son’s eyes, he was so worried and protective it truly shone in his eyes, she could see the questioning look _What could have have done this?_ Richie quickly made a lie, how he hated to do it but he had to “I think he fell on some rocks when we were playing...” he says and the other bruises on the boy’s back made it an easy lie to tell.

“Make sure after I get his rock wound cleaned ya put him in your bed, get more blankets to keep him warm” Maggie says, even if it was the middle of summer the boy needed to get warm, putting rubbing alcohol on it, she keeps her composure while it foams up a bit, she does the process over and over till it stops foaming and the bleeding lessens, but she felt it, his skin was no longer that ice like death but not warm yet. She put a large gauze pad over it with bandage tape to secure it, she nods to her son.

“Thank you ma..” Richie says quietly, his voice barely a whisper as he gets the clean, warm clothes off the sink counter, Maggie carefully cleans up the blood from the tile so no one slips in it, she had a feeling about why Richie was so.. protective over Eddie but she would never confront him about it, she does hope he comes to her later though. Maggie goes and gets Richie dry clothes as well as cleans off his glasses that had some blood on them from the shower water having splashed some in his face. She left to leave the rest up to Richie after she hands hm the dry clothes, she shut the door gently and hears Richie start whimpering as if he was holding back anymore tears.

Beverly is snuggled up to Ben while Stan and Bill were snuggled up to Mike, Went looks at his wife it’s a small smile, “How are the two boys doing?” He asks, a question on each of their minds. Maggie looks at him with a serious expression, she wasn’t smiling nor was she frowning, it wasn’t hard to tell that the solemn atmosphere in the house only darkened.

“He has a deep wound on his back but we got it all cleaned out and stopped the bleeding, his skin isn’t warm but its no longer that chill we get in winter.” Maggie replies seeing the relieved faces and heard the soft sighs the friends seemed to share.

Richie pick up Eddie, in warm, dry clothes and took him to his bedroom, it wasn’t the coolness on the skin that scared Richie, it felt like a bunch of small, limbs under his skin from the fear that suddenly rose up, the single realization Eddie’s body is here.. but mentally he was in another place.. He places the brunette on the sheets and moves them from under the body to put it ontop, Richie removes his glasses onto for his world to blur like one would experience if they got smoke in their eyes but unhurting, Another thought was eating at him, not of it Eddie wouldn’t awaken but would he be the same if he did wake up. Without much thought to it, he gets in the bed with Eddie hoping he could somehow warm him up anymore. One of his legs wraps around the smaller male’s legs, his arms wrap gently around the brunette’s chest pulling him tight as if protecting him. Richie’s chin sat up ontop of Eddie’s brunette locks, the tears had stopped but only left empty sobs and an empty shell behind. “I never should have let you go on your own...” Richie mumbles knowing the listener couldn’t hear him, but it just had to be said, he felt like it just had to be said aloud. If only he could let Eddie know how much he truly cared, why he felt a certain way towards the boy, if only he would ever get the chance again. _Eddie I wish I could have told you earlier.. but I couldn’t.. hell you would probably run away._. Richie sighs trapped in his own mind again, but something snaps out of his thought train, something that probably stopped his heart, something that crushed everything inside him, something that made him burst out crying, something that the whole house heard was ripped from his mouth as if to be a finalized revelation. 


	4. “Funny”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The curly haired boy turns to Connor, he wasn’t afraid of him anymore, wasn’t afraid to be called out by this weirdo anymore, “Now that is hilarious. Serves you right.” Richie laughs and bounds off after Eddie and his friends. Connor growls seeing the two Hawaiian shirts disappear beyond the door, he was going to get them back for this. A few teens hold in their laughs but cease when Connor glares at them, his blood dripping over his lips and falling from his chin but those words swirling around his mind.

Richie felt frozen, the skin suddenly turns a boiling heat, too hot to touch, he knew he had felt Eddie’s heart stop for a minute, maybe a few seconds, time wasn’t payed any attention or he thought he felt it stop.. Maggie bursts into the room to see Richie holding Eddie tightly, the boy’s eyes were slowly opening but Richie hadn’t realized it yet, Eddie didn’t know where he was or who was holding him. His chest was slowly heaving up and down against Richie’s, his eyes were hazed over but his head was burning up, he knew he was going to be sick. “Bathroom.. sick..” the brunette’s voice was so faint it was barely heard, RIchie ran to the bathroom with Eddie right before the boy grips the white porcelain to heave up his breakfast and stomach acid along with that licorice textured substance. A hand was rubbing his back andRichie looks over to see the Losers, a few were shocked and others were relieved yet scared. Eddie’s body was in hyperdrive, his whole system was shocked back into existence, he was breathing again, he was moving again, he was alive. Something wanted to keep him alive...

“He is so warm, I think he has a fever...” Richie says seeing beads of sweat roll from Eddie’s face from heaving deeply, Maggie nods and takes over for Richie despite her son’s pleading to stay there. Beverly welcomes Richie in her arms, he was sobbing against her, not being upset but how scared he had been, how absolutely terrified he was that he could have lost his _first love.. I could have lost him_ he sobs against her.

“Guys take Richie downstairs we will be down soon..” Maggie softly says, Wentworth takes the teenagers down the stairs and to the living room, Beverlys still let Richie hug her, his tears had ceased but his body was shaking, it was far worse than any clown, far worse than being locked in a room alone, it was worse than being forgotten. It wasn’t hard for the others to tell how much Richie truly cared about Eddie, Wentworth’s eyes widened a bit, it was then he realized why his son would cry over one like that, why he refused to leave the boy’s side, yet a warm smile came to his face after he knew Richie will always be his son, he motioned Beverly to let Richie up.

“Kiddo come here..” Wentworth says softly, surprising his son and the boy went over to him, rubbing his reddening eyes. His dad stood up and hugs him, Stan looks at his hands completely lost, it had given them all a fright, no more than a fright, an awakening.

Maggie helps Eddie clean up his mouth and chin, “Thank you Mrs. Tozier..” Eddie gets out in a whisper, his throat was burning too much to talk any louder. Maggie smiles softly at the boy, he looks so tired and pale, but he was alive so that is all that matters.

“Ill be okay.. is it alright if I use the bathroom and meet you guys downstairs?” Eddie questions getting a nod and a sweet smile, Maggie gives him a soft rub on his back, she missed the hollow tone as if one had a terrible headache with too many thoughts and wonders rolling around in his mind.She gets up and leaves the boy to his own, the second she closes the door the room goes quiet, like the door was sound proof, no footsteps leaving the door.. but he had seen her shadow go away. It was so silent a pin drop could be heard for miles, every hair on the nape of his neck stood up, a sizzling fills the room, like the sound bacon would make on the stove. His body felt slow, his mind was groggy but he found it, a black ink was bubbling from under the door, pouring into the room. Eddie’s heart pounds, no noise would come from his open mouth, his back hits the shower wall horrified, he was starting to lose his mind. A knocking snaps him from his fear stricken stare, the shock of what he had been through hit him when something knocks on the mirror with his own face was staring back but unlike his own, his reflection was grinning at him, the canine’s much too sharp to be human’s, the hazel eyes were exactly like his own, the black gunk was cleaned off as was it upon himself.

“What do you want from me?” Eddie demands glaring so darkly at his “reflection,” it only smiles back with such a cruelness it sent shivers down his spine, the giggle was his own but it hadn’t come from his own mouth. His eyes observes the one in the mirror, the walls had a red tint to them, the air seemed darker, the sink was filled with the black grim that had been on him, inside of him not too long before.

That’s when his voice, rolls from his reflection, “I dont WANT anything from you, we just want to keep the device happy...” the way it said those words made his whole body shake like a puppy would if it had been scolded. Eddie gasps deeply about to cry, he must be going crazy, just his imagination. _WHY IS MY MIND DOING THIS TO ME?!?, WHY IS IT MAKING ME GO CRAZY_ he wanted to scream it, he wanted to yell, he wanted shriek till his lungs rip but nothing came from his mouth.

Richie sat on the couch next to Beverly while his parents work in the kitchen to make the teens lunch. Everyone noticed how the boy was picking at his skin nervously, he had a twitch to go check on Eddie in case he got hurt or fell or hit his head on the sink somehow. His fears were ceased when a small boy in a buttoned up Hawaiian shirt and khakis walks down the steps cautiously, Richie immediately shot his head to see Eddie who’s skin was still a pale tan and his hair though was once again combed to just how he likes it, without a word he climbs on Richie’s lap and snuggles into the taller boy’s chest. Richie’s eyes were blown wide looking at the others, Beverly smirks at him motioning for him to return the smaller boy’s action. RIchie ever so gently and carefully wraps his arms around Eddie, Maggie looks at the two boys smiling softly, she knew what his secret was, she always had known ever since her son was in kindergarten but back then RIchie never understood it but she noticed it.

“Here boys and Ms. Marsh, I certainly hope you all like grilled cheese.” Maggie says and gets many happy faces, Eddie however didnt get off of Richie, forcing the taller boy to pick him up and walk to the kitchen table. Maggie smiles to see Eddie asleep on Richie, everyone ate besides Eddie who starts to wake up afterward, the group decides to wait for Eddie to wake up a bit more to see he could do.

“What do you want to do, after all you basically came back to life?” Richie asks trying to joke but failed, of course Eddie hadnt really died, _did he?_

“Can we take a walk..? I need some fresh air..” Eddie whispers seeing their faces and then they look towards Maggie to see if she was okay with that, she nods but does warn them, to not let him from their sights and if anything goes wrong immediately bring him back. Richie looks at his parents and then at his friends, he took a deep breath.

“Guys go on ahead, I’ll catch up, I want to... talk with my parents..” Richie says, the unmissable twitch in his hands, Beverly looks at Richie as if she knew exactly what he meant by that, all the losers understood that if Richie even had that tone he was going to say something serious, which was rare but important.

“We will keep Eddie safe.” Beverly promises and gives Richie a hug before following the others out of the house, Richie turns to his parents. Maggie hands him his glasses that she had grabbed off his bedroom dresser, she could tell he was nervous and anxious, Wentworth could feel Richie’s walls being lowered from the humor he had used to build them up, he could tell his own son was being vulnerable towards them.

“Can you Uh sit down...?” Richie says sitting on the couch, his mind was whirring and he wanted to back out of this, he wanted to get out, it was getting hard to breath, his eyes were already red from crying over his best friend but he felt tears prick at his eyes once more, his heart was starting to race and a numbness flew to his body. _I shouldnt do this, what if they dont accept? I dont want to do this, why am I doing this? I cant..._ His thoughts start pegging him, he cant do this but he has to, he doesnt understand but he has to. Maggie and Went sit on either side of Richie, his mother puts a calming hand on his arm while Went put an arm around his son, Richie was different, something switched in him when he thought his best friend... no his first crush, his first love..die in is arms.

“What is it honey?” Maggie asks softly, she could tell how nervous Richie was, she knew this wasn’t one of his pranks, it was a new feeling in the house, their son was lowering his walls that he put up with his jokes and humor.

“I-I uh I’m.. uhm well. Auhm... uh.” Richie stutters over his words, he felt a sob roll into his throat but he couldn’t start crying, not again. Went looks at Maggie with a concerned expression, they had never seen him like this, she gave him a soft smile in return. Richie sucks in a deep, shaky breath, his words had never faltered him before, yet this time he was silent.

“I’m.. ma.. dad. I-I..I uhm I’m gay..” Richie finally gets out, he felt his parents stop for a second but it was a second that blew every nerve in his body, he starts shaking and wishing he never said it, _oh god. they don’t love me anymore.. stupid stupid stupid...._ he groans at himself, his tears falling freely, then he felt two pairs of arms wrap around him.

“For that sweet boy, Eddie, you always worry over?” Maggie asks feeling Richie tense up and his breathing was choppy and his voice quaked like the time he accidentally knocked his two front teeth out on a sidewalk years prior. The teen could only get a nod out before gasping for breath despite his sobs, his dad hugs him tightly as if he was saying _Its okay, you aren’t weird, you are my son. You are our son, we always love you._ Went and Maggie each intertwine their hands with eachother and their son’s.

“So.. you’re gay.. so what?”Went asks with that fatherly smile which Richie hadnt expected, he didnt think his parents would still love him, he hadnt ever thought they would be.. supportive.

“I know this isn’t the best time however I have known ever since you were small..” Maggie pipes up and Richie’s eyes widen in horror, _SHE KNEW?!?!_ His stomach churned hard with his organ twisting uncomfortably.

“You came home one day... _. Richie bounces into his mom’s arms happily, he had a new bandage on his knees, probably from falling at school. His eyes were gleaming with a new happiness Maggie hadnt seen before._

_“Well isn’t my little tadpole happy, what’s got into you today?” Maggie chuckles seeing Richie squirm a bit, the boy’s blue eyes absolutely glowed. He was too busy giggling to talk, something had gotten him all bubbly, his bright smile and flustered face were definitely a new thing._

_“I made a new friend, hes small and angry.” Richie giggles seeing Maggie’s soft smile, she was glad Richie made friends but she did wonder why his eyes didnt shine like that when he met the Denbrough’s kid, something was special about the boy her son wouldn’t shut up about all the ride home, about his wide eyes, his fluffy hair, his tan skin, his beautiful smile well when Richie goofed off anyway._

_Fourth grade, the day Richie clean knocked his two front teeth out, well he didnt knock them out himself. An upper class, well he was three years older, school bully, Henry Bowers, Richie was walking to have lunch with Bill Denbrough, Stan Uris, and Eddie Kaspbrak until Bowers sticks his foot out and trips Richie, the boy falling hard face first into the concrete. The cracking of glass and a sharp wail emits from the boy on the ground holding his mouth, his lunch box had flung across the floor but that wasn’t the main concern, a deep red liquid flows freely from the young boy’s mouth while his glasses had cracked and the other lense was shattered._

_“That’s not very nice!” A small voice yells while a boy in flannel and another in a light blue shirt go over to help their friend up, Bowers turns his attention to the small asthmatic._

_“Yeah what are you gonna about it girly boy?” Henry dares standing a good foot or so over the boy, Eddie glares up at Bowers with probably the most “I want you dead” glare any one could give. Henry pushed Eddie down cause the boy to scrap both elbows, tears welled up in those doe eyes of the young boy, hell no one else around them cared._

_“Cry little baby, cry.. cry cry.” Henry mimicked while a blond and a long haired boy walks up with him laughing, Eddie nearly fell back down from the force of standing up and kicking Henry right in the shin hard._

_“Who’s the crybaby now?” Eddie snorted seeing Henry limp off, he did kick him hard enough to hit the nerve right below the knee cap, Vic and Patrick wonder off like paparazzi after Bowers. The short boy looks at his friend’s smiling innocently as if he hadnt done what he just did, Richie’s eyes were wide as saucers despite his glasses broken and his front teeth now in his hand with a metallic taste in his mouth, his eyes were filled with adoration for the boy who was somehow pissy enough to challenge Henry Bowers. Eddie nearly flipped when he saw the amount of blood and scratches the boy had on him, his fannypack was open in an instant to care for the wounds, all the while Richie watched him with a near puppy love expression._

_Maggie hurries to the school when she heard her son had been hurt, yet she was rather surprised to see her son with a huge, half moon smile with a large gap between his canines. “Honey what happened?!?!” His mother asked shocked to see his front teeth knocked out and his glasses lopsided with the lenses broken. Richie didnt say anything but kept smiling, that half in and half out in space glaze upon his eyes as he looked up at his mother with rosy red cheeks and scuffed clothing._

_“Ma he stood up to Bowers, he did it for me.” Richie grins with that gapped-tooth style he had gotten which only left Maggie to wonder if she would ever meet his “hero” as Richie described it the whole way home and to his father who smiled the whole time._

_When the end of fourth grade rolled around Richie came bounding up to his mother from the play ground with a small shadow following, that was the first time Maggie saw the short, brunette asthmatic with his small fanny pack, cute baby-blue polo, and black shorts. She saw the absolute adoration in her son’s eyes when he gazed upon the boy, Eddie introduced himself with the sweetest and silky voice that had Richie’s cheeks glow a winter sunset red. Richie’s soft laugh made Eddie look at those dark curls which gave him that lost puppy look in his eyes for his best friend that would, possibly, in the future be more than that._

“That was the day I put the pieces together, well it started when you were in kindergarten and the issue with Bowers but that day made it so clear. You love who you want to okay honey? Just be who you are and everything will be alright.” Maggie says watching her son’s face redden at the sweet memories and fun adventures they had. Went chuckles a tad seeing how embarrassed Richie got when his mother told the last snippet of his “Lover” story.

“Now go take care of that boy.” Went says giving his son a pat on the back gently, Richie wipes away his tears to rub his reddened eyes. Maggie gives him a hug before the boy can leave, she loved her son deeply and the small, vulnerable opening Richie gave made her love grow, if that was even possible from the amount of love she always had for him.

“Thank you for telling us sweetie, you best take care of that boy, heaven knows hes done the same for you many times.” Maggie says from the open front door to watch her son run off to find his friends.

The losers were listening to Ben rambling about how none of the things that have happened made since until Eddie spoke up “Was there ever a factory in Maine?” He questioned surprising them a bit while he spit something out from his mouth, it wasn’t clear like spit, it was tar black and sticky and yet no one questioned it. The group walks past the barber shop and the alley that was once filled with missing children flyers but they had ceased the flyers hopefully.

Ben opens the book ad flips to the table of contents for something upon Eddie’s question, Beverly looks Eddie up and down with a sort of observatory glance, something was off but she just couldn’t place it. Maybe it was the tone in his voice, maybe it was the way his stride was, maybe it was the underlaying darkness that lays on the outer lines of his irises. 

Ben flips through the page of the book, he found about something that burned down where “Neibolt stood..” he read the page aloud, “the pages are ripped so i can only make out a few words.. Neibolt Street was used as the annual Hallows eve and Festival for the town... the.. something something... June 1, 1958 on the day of the festival a funhouse... fire in the mirror room... no body was found as if they disappeared... the house didnt burn but as left to rot with its... something..”

Eddie looks at Ben along with the others, each of their faces either were confused or mixed with emotions, until they heard laughingand chatter nearby. “Yeah honestly Henry couldn’t ever actually get to them but I Can.” A voice with the slickness of hell, none other than Connor bowers walking into the Arcade with one of his gang members. Bill starts to follow but Beverly shook her head and pointed to Eddie, who spit something up again and wipes his mouth, if Connor got ahold of any of them it would be Eddie. None of them were paying attenion and listened to Ben reading off names and a few choppy paragraphs from the ripped pages.

Eddie opens the door to the arcade to hear what Connor was going to say, he sneaks around the few kids by the door not wanting to be noticed by anyone in case they said anything about him being there. He found exactly who he wanted, near the back next to an older version of Street Fighter, the two black joysticks and cherry red buttons had a rather new shine depite it looking older than most of the games, the screen was bright with color of the game waiting to be played, wanting to be used. “Honestly that little group is a bunch of fags, that Marsh probably has fucked them all like the whore she is.” Connor complains to his buddies who just laugh, Eddie had to hold himself back, he was curious to find out what else that boy had to say.

Richie trots up panting, “I thought you guys went to the library..” he sheepishly explains his eyes surveying the others, his expression immediately changes when he didnt see his short brunette with them.

“Where is Eddie?” Richie nearly growls, They hadn’t fucking watched him, they look at each other horrified, they hadnt been paying attention, they didnt know where he went or where he is. Richie pushes past them, something told him to go inside the building, of course a few teens look at him remember that day a few years earlier but backed down from saying anything to see the absolute livid, embering glow in his blue eyes.

“You know what Vic, I wish Stan Uris would go and kill him self, that would be the funniest headline. Or maybe Denbrough would be so much better, with his suh suh stutter.” Connor mimics Bill’s stutter and laughing rolls after his words from the others, Eddie’s hands tighter into fists.

“Wait, haha the best thing that happened to this town was that Denbrough kid dying, heaven knows what a mess he would be around fags and a slut. The would be funny, to see how fucked up that Denbrough kid looks like now, all rotting and shit.” Connor laughs which is followed by his buddies laughing with him.

“What the fuck is so funny about that?” a voice rolls like poison out of someone’s mouth, Conner turns to see that asthmatic glaring at him, he just grins and laughs it off.

“What the fuck is so fucking funny about?! why the fuck would that be funny!?” Eddie yells getting everyone’s attention, but he didnt feel the eyes on him, no he felt something different, rotting anger, the pitch black rot boiling inside him. Without warning he shoves Connor against the game which had somehow been unplugged or a malfunction in the wiring because it went grey.

“You think its that funny...?” Eddie’s voice gained a hollow, empty tone, his hands had found place on Connor’s chest to pin him against the game, he wanted to break his arm, he wanted to break something, he wanted to kill him. The noise from the other games died down, voices had faded, the only sound was his and Connor’s breathing, the difference was is that he could hear the absolute worry in each sharp breath, his eyes traveled to the boy’s wide eyes, he was terrified, whatever Connor was seeing is scaring him shitless. A shadow behind Eddie rose like a bear ready to pound on a cornered animal, a hand came on Eddie’s shoulder which broke him of his concentration, it broke the childlike whispers, it broke that angering rot but he didnt miss the screen. “Oh” _oh my god the screen_ , it was a deadly masterpiece, a gory deceitful masterpiece, bloody rows of teeth lays behind the glass, a long, snake like tongue rolls from the mouth dripping with crimson. The teeth lined up and glimmered like metal, the two buttons dip down as if one was playing on them and the joysticks move with fluid movements, Eddie paused a bit but reasoned it was just his imagination.

Eddie releases Connor, innocence and mimicked fear fills those doe eyes he had, he turns to find a curly haired male looking down at him with concern, “He thought it was funny that Georgie died.” Eddie hisses but hears Connor snort again. This time Richie didnt even try to stop Eddie from swinging hard, the soft crack of the boy’s nose fills the room, Connor moans out while his hands fly to his broken nose which was gushing with blood. _You will be dead by dawn..._ Something chuckles in Connor’s ears, his eyes go wide but the only person near him was a short, asthmatic who’s eyes were locked with his, pure, seething anger swimming in them but his lips sealed shut. Eddie turns and sways away, his knuckles turning a rose red from where his fist met Connor’s nose, Richie just watched in awe at how fast Eddie could change his emotions.

The curly haired boy turns to Connor, he wasn’t afraid of him anymore, wasn’t afraid to be called out by this weirdo anymore, “Now that is hilarious. Serves you right.” Richie laughs and bounds off after Eddie and his friends. Connor growls seeing the two Hawaiian shirts disappear beyond the door, he was going to get them back for this. A few teens hold in their laughs but cease when Connor glares at them, his blood dripping over his lips and falling from his chin but those words swirling around his mind _You will be dead by dawn..._ but also another thought, a darker one, his own thought rolls into his head _that Kaspbrak wont be wheezing very long.._

“Holy shit Eds”. RIchie laughs seeing Beverly grinning from the door, they had seen the whole thing, Eddie sighs a bit he felt so drained from that. His mind made it a bit foggy, his muscles weakening rapidly, he grips onto Richie before another word could be said.

“Eddie?! Eds Buddy!?” Richie questions his eyes wide, Eddie looks at him exhausted, Beverly looks at the others he could have just overworked his body after all he basically came back... not even an hour prior.

“I’m just tired.. that was too much.. I just need to lay down...” Eddie mumbles, his eyelids fluttering as if he was trying to stay awake desperately. Richie picks up the smaller boy gently and lets Eddie wrap his legs around his waist to feel secure, Ben was still flipping through the history book to look for anything that had a factory but only the mirror story was the only true tie to Neibolt and Mirrors.

Richie hated the way some adults and teenagers would look at him carrying Eddie how he was, he just hoped to high heavens no one would tell Mrs. Kaspbrak, no amount of clowns could scare him more than that wretched woman. By the time they had reached Richie house everyone was looking tired from everything that happened that day, Maggie went pale seeing Richie carrying Eddie but he gave his mother a sincere smile. Went fixed the glasses on his own face to see them clearly, he had a soft but worrisome expression seeing how gentle Richie was with Eddie, Beverly and Mike were laughing and kept play punching each other. “He’s got a right hook on him.” Mike chuckles making Bill laughs a tad while Stan has a small smile on his lips, Ben puts the book down tired and gave up looking for anything.

Richie takes Eddie upstairs to his room, “Here Eddie..” he says gently placing the boy on the bed to see those brunette locks curling at the very end. Eddie looks up at Richie, like a small bunny looking up to the sun, he always that look as if Richie hung the moon in the sky but he knew why, oh this time he knew why he always felt that way towards him. Eddie put his hand on Richie’s chest gently, the taller boy froze a bit since that was unexpected, the boy beneath him smiles softly to remove his hand from Richie.

“Thank you ‘Chee.” Eddie says with a soft voice looking up at Richie sweetly and innocently, yet there was something darker lurking under his irises like a shark just below the surface but Richie wasn’t able to see it clearly. The small smile that seems to hide secrets, that small little giggle that he gave when Richie rubs a thumb over Eddie’s hand which is in his own, the tan skin soft under his touch.

“Get some sleep spaghetti.” Richie says receiving a scoff in reply, he grins at Eddie and walks to the door, Eddie sighs at the nickname but gives a smile in return that melted Richie’s heart. Once the boy leaves the room, the brunette feels blood pumping in his veins as if he had run a marathon, he got up for some reason he didnt feel tired anymore. His legs barely wobble when he reaches the door, he went down the steps to find the Losers and the Tozier’s chatting about the arcade only to immediately silence when Eddie comes down the steps.

“I thought you needed sleep?” Beverly questions a bit confused, Eddie just shrugs and goes over to sit between Richie and Ben. Maggie looks over Eddie to see his bruised knuckles, she goes up to get something cool to put it on it, she comes back to give it to Eddie who gratefully thanks her for it.

“His body is probably in some sort of hyper state so it feels tired and the immediately jumps back up.” Maggie reasons knowing it would hopefully settle Richie down who was picking at his skin like mad, luckily it stopped when she said it. 

“I’m guessing you got that from punching that boy?” Wentworth asks fixing his glasses seeing the redness on Eddie’s knuckles, Eddie nods with a grin seeing the others chuckle but Richie put an arm around him like a trophy.

However Maggie did have to ask “What prompted this? So in case anyone gets in trouble it wont be pinned on you. Also who is Connor?” silence falls, they knew how much even mentioning Georgie would hurt them, he was like the little brother of the entire group, Wentworth looks at them expecting an explanation.

“Mom remember when I came home crying one day in the summer of eighty nine?” Richie asks his mother getting a nod, “Connor called me out for being gay even if he didn’t know that anyway he is bowers cousin.” Richie finishes his explanation, his parents a little surprised the group weren’t shocked to hear Richie say he was gay infront of them.

“How didnt I see that coming..” Maggie sighs, she couldn’t stand any of the Bowers family at all, so it wasn’t as bad news when Henry was arrested for killing his father yet she still had that motherly sympathy since Oscar “Butch” Bowers wasn’t the best parent in the world.

“The reason why I punched him was because he thought it was quote on quote “Funny” Georgie died.” Eddie says only to see both Went and Maggie’s eyes widen in shock, _Those Bowers are sick_ , the two adults seem to share the same the thought.

“Ye got ye a might foul hook Monsieur spaghet~” .” Richie jokes with a horrid Irish-British accent which sent them into laughing fits, Maggie smiles with that little hint of a grin on her lips. Eddie buries his face in Richie’s chest embarrassed and smacked his arm, Stan hides his smile in Mike’s arm while Bill gave a chuckle to see Stan trying to deny that theTrashMouth was actually funny because of his horrible impressions.

The rest of the afternoon was spent with them giggling and watching whatever came on the TV, Maggie made the kids and her husband spaghetti, thanks to Richie’s plea to honor “His Spaghetti” for fighting Connor, much to Eddie’s scoff when he overheard that nickname.

“Dinner is ready!” Maggie calls and the boys and girl come to her smiling, Maggie definitely was a great cook. Dinner was fun to have every around the table, everyone took turns to call their parents after getting acceptance for a large sleep over. Stan’s parents were a little more stern and took more time to convince since he kinda was still grounded, but they caved when he promised he’d be home before his father had to go to work as well as that he would go with his dad, despite never wanting to step foot in that place again. Of course no one had anything to wear to sleep so Maggie said she would try to find something for them all to wear for the night and Richie said he had some clothes that didnt fit him anymore. It didnt take long long for everyone to get “night wear” clothes on, Maggie had given Beverly one of her clean gowns which fit the girl perfectly, the boys all had shirts and shorts besides Richie who had his Hawaiian shirt buttoned up.

“What movie should we watch?” Richie asks taking out VHS tapes, Poltergeist, Halloween, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm street and a few Disney movies. Of course they picked Poltergeist, Maggie and Went gave them one single, extremely strict rule “keep it PG kids.” Which of course made Richie snicker getting a soft slap on the back of his head from Eddie.

Ben and Beverly took place on the floor, Stan, Mike, and Bill took the couch, Richie and Eddie took the armchair, Beverly put the VHS in and hit play. “th th this is kind of lih lih like what’s goh going on but nuh nuh not with television.” Bill says getting an agreement nod from both Richie and Bev, Eddie hated to do this but he snuggled into Richie’s chest.Stan laid across both Mike and Bill’s laps while Bill laid his head on Mike’s shoulder, Beverly laid down so her head was in Ben’s lap to let him play with her hair.

The movie did seem to portray what’s happening to most of them, well maybe not as much but it did have to with seeing things in screens, so that was a point. Everyone was either falling asleep or asleep by the time the movie ended, Richie woke Eddie while Ben woke Beverly up. The sleepy group follows Richie up, Eddie being held bridal style from refusing to get up which only lead the joke to Eddie being a “princess” getting a slap. “You guys can take the bed, Ill sleep on the floor if thats alright it’s Eddie and you all?” Richie asks seeing Eddie nod but Bill refused, it was Richie’s house after all, after some arguing and such Ben and Beverly took the bed while Stan, Mike, Bill, Richie, and Eddie found sleeping bags or a mattress.

Richie turns the light off after using the bathroom, he gets in the sleeping bag next to Eddie who was nodding off in sleep. After a few minutes the sound of snores and heavy breathing was the only thing filling the air, Eddie could sense the sleepiness surrounding the air and making the atmosphere heavy. Richie moves and puts an arm over Eddie, to much of his surprise the boy in question was asleep with his glasses askew on his face, the brunette gives a little breath of air out and removes the arm from over him even if he did like the feeling. Eddie carefully crawls from his sleeping back, the zipper making a soft sizzling noise which was much too loud for his comfort, he went to the bedroom door to slip out to go to the bathroom, something was pulling him towards it, towards the mirror. What he saw would have scared anyone in their sane mind, but would anyone be sane after everything they’ve done. A simple word written in blood, the crimson liquid, bleeding like a slit throat, it seems as if you touched that it would consume you, but the word had meaning, a cursed, murderous intent behind the letters, _“Funny”,_ Eddie stares at it tilting his head.


	5. Devil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the first time in his life he believes in true evil, for the first time in his life he believes in the devil as he slams a door shut behind him, the odd feeling of being safe washes over him like a tidal wave of relief, he leans against the door, his heart pounding and a shiver rolls down his back, he couldn't be safe, not yet. He holds his flashlight like a weapon, there was no way he would go without a fight, he would let whatever the hell it was to win.
> 
> ⚠️ WARNINGS⚠️ This chapter has some violence and gore

A door slams, the only sound in the dark night which had been silent, it was much too early in the night for the blackest time. A few moths with gossamer wings took to the sky as if little ghosts against the dark twilight sky. The night was much darker than normal but then again it was a new moon so that would be expected, yet the stars seem to be hiding like rabbits would in hibernation. The air was uncharacteristically still and even more the atmosphere was hauntingly silent, the darkness seems to curl around the house did strange things to the familiar sounds of the town, muffling noises that would normally be comforting, not even footsteps could be heard. The male walks away from his house kicking a rock as far as he could, anger from earlier still burns inside his veins, he wanted that Kaspbrak dead, he wanted to be the one who did it.

Connor walks around his house in a loop, the twigs snapping under his feet, he did stop to listen when he thought he heard footsteps but didnt hear a thing, he didnt hear the familiar crickets nor did he hear the small screeching of bats. His neck nearly cracks to look when he hears a breath right beside his ear, nothing was there, nothing was even around the property of the house. He decided to think of something else with a chuckle, remembering when he had trashed Richie, twice, once before they dated and once after, the relationship only lasted a few days but he wasn't the only one who remembered. The sticks snap under his shoes while he continues walks around his house thinking of a plan to get rid of that little asthmatic, his flashlight burning through the dark twilight. The darkness seems like it was rolling as if to be hands across the ground, not even a slight light from starts nor the moon, the town's lights still shown against the transparent mist of darkness.

He jumps when a noise, like a wounded animal cry but much too human, he growls trying to be tough, he wasn't scared of anything, however the night became a dead silence which sent his anxiety through the roof. Nothing creaked, nothing groaned, not a single animal, not even the wind dared to make a noise. No wait, there was a noise, it was low and on the edge of hearing but yet it was still there, the noise seems to be footsteps pounding on the ground. The darkness seems as if begins to lift showing the forest and street, his flashlights begins to fade as the rumbling stopped slowly.

A high pitched, girly scream comes from the direction of the town and a figure falls into view, Connor looks with eyes wide in horror, his heart was thundering miles a minute once his eyes lay on the figure. He shines his flashlight like a holy light on whoever just crashed onto the property, "Kaspbrak what are you doing?" Connor growls his fear turning into uncharted rage.

Eddie looks at Connor with fear filled doe eyes, "I didn't see where I was going..." his voice was barely audible from the shear horror trembling his breathing.

"Well you better start running....." Connor hisses wielding the flashlight like a bat, Eddie's eyes widen in shock as he scrambles up despite the new bruises on his knees burning his skin. His breathing gets wheezy and sharp went he dashes away hearing the other's boy's feet growing closer, the pitch black shades to show stars twinkling dimly, Lyon leaving houses and buildings dark with sleeping people.

Eddie's chest began to pinch his lungs painfully, each breath was getting harder, the street lights barely on but the dimness was pleasant, since they are the only light besides the one which Connor was chasing him down with. Eddie slips on the grass near the huge statue, who was standing threateningly with his axe over his shoulder, the flannel was much darker in the night, like the color of blood, Paul's smile was much too wide to be just made up from cement. The street signs barely visible from the shroud darkness that lay its place on the earth, Eddie's irises turn to pinpricks when he makes the mistake of looking back to see Connor gaining up on him, the flashlight ready to be swing hard to break his bones. The harsh darkness looked as if it was clawing around a rusted metal fence, the wood rotten and planks cracking, the roof ready to collapse as if the fire from decades before was still smoldering the tiles, the windows cracked from rule breaking teens throwing rocks at it as a dare.

The door was open like the wind had blew it up but there hasn't been any wind, the silence was deathly as the boy scrambles up the creaking wood that dares to snap under the weight, Connor paused but it was short lived as he ran into the old house after him. The stairs squeal as the smaller boy thunders up them, each step made the wood dip enough to crack, Connor follows steps behind. Eddie barely has to look as he dashes to the top to see the hole he had fallen in only years before, he looks back to see Connor only a few steps from reaching him, his heart drops as he jumps. A door, the front door slams shut in its own with the thin sound of a lock clicking, he makes it to the other side but his ankles and legs get raked by the splintered wood, destroying the skin making blood pool on the wood quickly. The wood hungrily soaks up the liquid greedily, Connor grins seeing Eddie on the ground, "Oh lookie lookie, no where to run now." Connor grins darkly at the boy who was desperately trying to scoot back but the shorts kept getting ripped on splinters.

Eddie looks down, his brunette swooshed hair falling in his face a bit, Connor watches evilly to see the boy look down in defeat, or so he thought. Seconds change to hours or so it seems, absolute fear buries its way into Connor’s chest when the brunette looks up with his eyes shut tight, his mouth and lips spread in a grin, his tongue against his closed lips as if holding back something in his mouth without seeing the pure confusion written all over Connor's face. The smaller male's lips open, still holding that grin, his tongue laying back in place, Connor nearly screams as liquid blacker than twilight leaks from the boy's mouth, licorice black liquid rolls from his closed eye lids. Eddie lets out a low, dark giggling as he opens his eyes to reveal glowing irises, three pupils swirl in each glowing, hazel pond of iris. Connor's mouth opens in shock to try and say something, a childlike giggle rolls from behind him making him spin quickly to see nothing, yet that didnt scare him as much as turning to see the boy was missing but the ink where he had been seconds before was bubbling, the silence becoming deafening.

“YOU SHARE A SEAT WITH THE DEVIL!!” Connor cries out, his voice breaking as he nearly falls down into the gape, nothing replies..

"Wrong, the devil is the one that shares the seat with ME, I was here first" a voice giggles from the floor below, Connor looks down the gapin the wood to see Eddie grinning up at him, Connor's eyes meet Eddie's, the swirling of the pupils slowly hypnotizes him. The black tar leaks down the tan skin while his tears fall down with the same black blood, Connor watches in shock and horror unable to look away, Eddie raises a hand to show fingers with black claws. Another, no more, many more giggles roar from the room nearby making him losing eye contact, the flashlight in his hand feeling like a ten ton weight. The anxiety creeping up his neck, _IM In A nightmare, this cant be real hahah, this is my own mind playin tricks on me, I'm home safe and sound, I'm in bed and this is a drea-_ a scream escapes his lips as something grabs his shoulder, Eddie stood behind him grinning, the ink dripping onto Connor burning his skin making the boy whimper. "Funny how the tables have turned..." Eddie chuckles in his ear, his voice hollow and much more deadly with a hint of threat in his voice, he steps away backwards soaking in the sickly sweet fear radiating off Connor, the taste of death upon his on lips. Eddie chuckles as he disappears in the darkness which shrouds him, Connor's eyes widen as the giggling riots over the floor, _WHERE IS THE LAUGHTER COMING FROM?!?!_ He wanted to know why he was hearing laughter from children he couldn't see. 

A small voice trickles with the sweetness yet devilish groan came from all around, no it was near him, wait it was inside his brain, "Hungryy...." he froze, his eyes found something that would make an adult man scream like a little girl, the pure and traumatizing fear flashes in his body, it was too much for him, it was too much for anyone as laughter swirls around him, inside him. A hand bolts from the darkness grabbing him while claws dig into his flesh as if it was tissue paper, teeth grind into the back of shoulder making him scream with agony. Eddie sunk his teeth deep and rips off some flesh like taking cotton candy from the paper holder, "run..." Eddie whispers letting go to make a game of this as the bloody skin is dropped to the floor.

Connor dashes, much against his better judgement, down the stairs, not the hall where he knew that demon wanted him, his new adrenaline pushing him down the stairs, the few feet between possible safety and the demon seemed miles. His blood stop dead, the devil was standing at the front door, his eyes swirling and his mouth open wide to allow the black tar roll down his lips and chin. The creature was quick to grab him and slam him into the stair post which groans against the pressure against it, Eddie growls darkly his eyes glowing with such an ancient evil that would send the entire town running. A clawed hand grips his neck to silence the scream that had dared to call out, Connor sputters and gags as the claws tighten on his throat, the sharp tips dig into neck while the bite burns his back from the wooden post on the stairs being shoved into it.

“What the fucking hell you?!? WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING THIS?!?” He gasps out while starting to hyperventilate from the horror starting to swirl in chest, those eyes shine into his memory as his mind tried desperately to understand what was happening. Eddie threw his head back in a laugh, it echoes in ever crevice of the house, it was hollow and so far from life it made Connor freeze.

“You dont know what I am...?” the creature asks with a hint of sadness but it was easy to tell that the sadness was forced and sugar coated with lies. “I am the thing you fear most, I’m that madness crawling under your skin, squirming, writhing around inside you waiting to get free... I am the messenger of truth that you silence with hope and that truth is that in the end there isn’t nothing at all..” the words roll off Eddie’s tongue with such poison that would send anyone running but with that fear gave Connor a surge of adrenaline, the stairs scream as shoes pound against it, he wanted to get away, he wanted to scream for help, he wanted out of this nightmare, he turns down the hall away from the gap, away from the mouth of a monster, tears roll down Connor's face. For the first time in his life he believes in true evil, for the first time in his life he believes in the devil as he slams a door shut behind him, the odd feeling of being safe washes over him like a tidal wave of relief, he leans against the door, his heart pounding and a shiver rolls down his back, he couldn't be safe, not yet. He holds his flashlight like a weapon, there was no way he would go without a fight, he would let whatever the hell it was to win, he would let Eddie get him, if it even was Eddie. Connor looks around the room, it had cobwebbed chairs with inches of dust layered upon the furniture, he had that soft feeling of being safe, it was unnatural. The silence lays its place among the house, goosebumps roll down his body, the safety feeling was overwhelming but the worry of the demon's teeth finding him one again, shatters that feeling but with mild disbelief there was no teeth, nothing that wanted to kill him, yet.

The wood splinters as something rams against the door, _this cant be happening,_ he needed help right now, RIGHT NOW he opens his mouth to yell again, opening his mouth as wide as he could to scream for help but at that moment blood spurts from his mouth as he felt something suddenly burst between his neck and jaws, it happens as if in slow motion. Laughter shook the walls as the wooden door blossoms, opening like a rare, red flower all spines and petals gaping wide as if to entice a lover, shards and shrapnel shred open Connor's back, sending a shower of scarlet spurting from him that splashes against the door and walls like wings. He never had time to register the pain as the thing that caused the hole forced something long and cylindrical was force clean through his back and up his rib cage to finalize its place into his mouth from his throat, he couldn't tell what it was at first but the taste of dust and cobwebs from one of the wooden posts on the stairs mixed with his own blood, the sharp thing skewers his tongue and he felt his teeth break while his jaw pops loose from the rest of his skull with one last push from the demon behind the door. The door shatters when the creature forces itself through the wood, he felt parts of himself he had never felt before burst within his body as the creature shafted the wood to churn his organs into mush, whatever it was tore through the door with a triumphant grin upon its face. He didnt even feel the shards of wood implanted in his back anymore, only the wood that had impaled him, it was almost a relief when his aching body collapsed and the rhythm of his heart slowed, stuttering to its final beats. The last thing that flashes in his consciousness, before he finally died was a figure giggling and smiling like a maniac, the eyes turn to pinpricks of three pupils with no sign of sanity or mercy as he whispers five simple, familiar words that had haunted his consciousness in the daylight hours, his last day, his last breath, his last words to hear “You’ll be dead by dawn...”

Slowly dawn threatens to rip the darkness in half with her beauty of fire light, crickets play their song of love and grace amongst the deepest night. Beverly shoots up with a small shriek, her eyes blown wide and her forehead damp with sweat. The boys jerk up startled, Beverly's chest rose and fell with quick and rapid movements, "Bev.." Ben questions nervously, never having seen her in this state before.

"Sorry.. it was just a nightmare... I'm sorry for waking you all up..." Beverly apologizes and waves them off, but her heart thunders in her chest from the "nightmare" she had experienced, why won't they just stop....?

"Where's Eddie...?" A voice questions, Mike looks straight at the empty sleeping bag next to Richie, the boy's eyes widen and his glasses are pushed up on his face. Beverly nearly jumps up, nearly knocking Ben off the bed in the process, something about her actions made them go on edge. Despite their sudden awakened state they all got up quick, quicker than ever as they reach the bedroom door hearing water run from a nearby closed door. Stan yawns but his heart was pounding from being woken up with a start, all of their hearts were.

Richie goes to the door and knocks gently, the sloshing of water turns off. "E eds?" His voice trembles out the question, a soft reply melts his heart, Richie turns to the others who have a panicked look.

The door opens with Eddie wrapped in a towel and his brunette hair wet and messy, "S sorry.. I just couldn't shake that dirty feeling and the dream I had wasn't much help.." he says much to their relief but his eyes look red like he had been sobbing, Beverly let's out a rush of air she didn't know she was holding.

Stan yawns and walks back to the mattress, Mike and Bill getting on either side of him to try and get back to sleep. Ben looks at Beverly who seems to be a little anxious and nervous about something or maybe it really was just her dream, but it was so different than other dreams..

Eddie finishes thoroughly cleaning his mouth out with water and gets the clothes back on but did see his clothes from earlier laying on the counter, Mrs. Tozier must have put them here before we went to sleep. He smiles to himself to put on the knee high socks and his shirt, he walks back into the bedroom to find everyone laying peacefully besides Beverly who was staring at the ceiling with a concerned expression but his vision was blurry from his reddened and tears threatening to fall from the horrific nightmare. Eddie looks at her worriedly as he steps over Richie who looks up at him watching as the smaller boy gets in the sleeping back next to him, Eddie yawns and snuggles deep into the sleeping bag. Richie sighs contently, his heart hadnt slowed from the sudden anxiety when he didn’t see the asthmatic next to him, but he was now so he had that. Richie carefully and gently puts his arm around the small form of Eddie.

The shimmering rays of light hit the sleeping teens to wake them up as a wet smell fills the house, Beverly yawns and stretches while the boys slowly wake up. “‘Ere my glasses?” Richie yawns while Eddie slowly feels around above Richie’s sleeping bag to grab the glasses to hand to him. Stan sits up, his curly hair now a fluffy and messy heap on his head making Bill let out a groggy chuckle.

“Well ah say Staniel luooks lihke ya couhld have ya ohwn birds nest” Richie chuckles trying to speak with a thick accent, Stan sends a death glare towards Richie even though both Mike and Bill laugh with Ben. Eddie sits up, his mind still racing wondering if the nightmare he had was a dream, Mike is the first to stand up and walk over the others to get to the door.

“Come down for pancakes!” Maggie calls, her voice soft and cheerful, Richie nearly jumps up and crashes downstairs when he heard that, Beverly chortles at the boy’s actions. Eddie shakes his head getting up, his legs nearly give way from having slept wrong, Bill’s jaw pops when he yawns loudly.

The rest follow suit after cleaning up their sleeping bag or the mattress or the sheets and blankets, Maggie sent down fresh, fluffy pancakes in front of each spot, in which they all thank Mrs. Tozier for making them breakfast. Throughout breakfast Richie kept teasing Eddie since the boy didnt use syrup at all from fear of getting sugar poisoning, which of course wasn’t a real thing but his mother had taken a toll on the boy and still does so.

Stan said his thank you’d and quick goodbyes to Bike home before his parents got too upset and he wouldn’t be allowed out of the house for a week, Mike waves and told them he had to go take care of his chores leaving Ben, Bill, Beverly, Richie, and Eddie to chat on the front porch, it felt off not having everyone there. Eddie picks at his fannypack after he had gone to get his clean clothes from the bathroom and put them on, Beverly kept looking at Eddie like she was looking at ghost.

“Beverly why do you keep looking at Eddie?” Ben asks, of course he was juts questioning this but was a tad bit jealous even if Richie “claims” Eddie is his. Beverly shakes off the nerves and turns her attention to Ben, Bill still had a crush on her but it didnt last long, Ben still had that “love at first sight” crush on her but would never act upon it.

“Just had another nightmare... about when we are older.... it had Eddie in it...” Beverly sighs seeing Eddie freeze, they all knew when Beverly had a nightmare it was about they dying horribly or worse.

“What h happened...?” Bill asks, the question on the other boys’ minds, Eddie tugs at his socks nervously barely flinching from the sudden muscle strain in the one he was pulling the sock.

“It was different than other times.. he was standing in a hotel or something and there was a knife in his face... in his cheek to be exact... and then he was in the hall bleeding all over the place from his mouth..” Beverly explains as the dream begins to fade as she talks it, luckily that was the upside to having them but it was bad because she would never have the same dream twice and if she did they were fuzzy and hard to remember, her dreams were different and sometimes even more gruesome than the last.

“o oh..” Eddie mumbles out, relieved it wasnt like him getting into a car accident but it still shook him up pretty well, Getting stabbed in the mouth in a hotel room couldn’t possibly be any more sanitary than the grey water down in the sewers, just the thought made him shudder.

Ben got up to grab the old history book from the coffee table, “I couldn’t find anything else about mirrors but there was more on Neibolt.. it’s different than theone with fire and the mirrors remember?.” Ben explains getting nods and flips to a yellowed page with the title “Water Flow” Ben reads it over, his expression changing like he had read the most awfully, animal dies in movie, story.

“I dont think I should read this.. I dont think this news articleshould even be in this book, it isn’t history.. but its about the well in the basement... what a nice day isn’t it?” Ben nearly yells, trying to change the subject, slamming the book closed, Eddie looks at him with slight horror while Bev and Richie look at each other with worry. Bill was about to say something until Eddie gets up, panicked and had a wild look in his eyes scaring Ben a bit, well. Bit as in nearly tossing the book across the room. Richie looks at Eddie softly and slowly puts his hand on the germaphobe’s knee hoping he wasnt too obvious..

“Momm- mom will kill me if I dont get home soon...” Eddie says faster than a freight train as he dashes down the street, Richie stares after him with his brows furrowed, he looks at the other confused.

“Did anyone else notice how often he picked at his socks like he ?” Ben asks looking at the others with a questioning stare, Bill and Beverly share a look, what happened? Richie looks down, not listening to what they were saying, was he the reason Eddie ran..? Why did Eddie run the opposite way he should’ve gone..Eddie dashes home and slams the door behind him, his panting fills the house, his heart was beating like he was going to have asthma attack, like he had jogged miles, like he had rested and immediately jumped up, he had reached where he wanted to go, he was Home again.

_The trouble now was..._ _Eddie had finally woken up_


	6. This Is Real

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Nobody ever told you the stories in Ye Old Tales were real..about what can happen??” The boy asks a little scared, Eddie shook his head all the while his heart began to pound in his chest,if those stories were truly real then why would they be written in a folklore book, wouldnt it be untrue? unreal? Just a made up story to scare kids from going out too late during Hallowseve or play certain games at certain times?  
> “Wait... did he bite you?" one of the three boys asks as if the other statement doesn’t matter in the slightest, but the boy in question remains unresponsive, Haystack looks at the others worried they just sent him into shock.

Ruffling of a raincoat could be heard moving above the figure, “Are you alive...? Shoot I think he’s dead..” a voice, softer than most yet with such a pleasant ring fills the figure’s ears. Small hands went to the figure’s neck making sure nothing was broken, the feeling runs along the figure’s arms, down the figure’s spin to make sure the cervical, thoracic, and the lumbar spine which is attached to the sacrum, the hands travel to make sure the pelvis is in place and then finally to make sure neither leg nor foot bones were broken. The figure moves as each and every bone their hands bypass, checking them off, they gently shake the figure who’s on the floor.

  
Doe eyes blink open, the world seeming as if it was spinning, his head pumping with pain when he tries to move. “Dont move. You must be so disoriented... I’m so sorry he did this to you..” the voice reasons, a yellow blur in the figure’s eyes, the lights were bright enough to to see but dim enough to make the air seem thick.

  
“Wh-who are you..?” Eddie groans out struggling to sit up, his vision still not daring to focus on a yellow and blue blob. The being sits back on their own knees, seeming a bit upset but not surprised... it has been three years, they’ve grown up.

  
“I’m the lost boy, let me take you to Peter Pan.” The being giggles playfully only confusing Eddie even more, he starts sinking back into sleep from the headache raging against his mind, the lost boy picks him up which is very surprising because Eddie is a bit bigger than the smaller one. Eddie feels the sway of the being carried somewhere, the oddity of the walls peeling and burnt and then the ripped furniture only made him ditzy with confusion and questions left unsaid. Not even seconds after it began he was being put down and words from the being didn’t correlate to his brain, it was like he was underwater with someone trying to talk to him. He barely felt wetness on his chin and under his eyes, down his cheeks, the chill however burns the inside of his skin, like something had just dug under his skin.Eddie’s world was tipping and spinning, god how his head begged for sleep, begged for release, begged for an explanation. The door opens from the lost boy kicking it and picking up Eddie with caution, excuses filling the being’s brain if any asked of to what he was doing. The world was dark yet something was illuminating the sky, street lamps dim as if it had years of dust on the bulb, there was an aching feeling when his eyes gaze over where he had just been taken from. The house was covered in thick grime and cobwebs.. no fog, it was subtle, it was like on Halloween when fog churns against the autumn ground in late October, but it was the middle of summer, why would there be fog, why arent kids running around, why is it dark?

  
“Keep awake buddy...” The lost boy whispers looking around, apparently the silence made him cautious like something was going to rush at them, the hushed tone he used creeps up Eddie’s back with anxiety, the liquid upon his lips, chin, and face began to lowly burn as if he was made of wax and the liquid was the fire to melt him. The sights felt so unnatural and inhuman, the silence was cutting the air with such a pain it made it seem like someone had thrown a switch from the happy, smiling town he used to know into such a deathly hallow, the lights seemingly try to blind him despite the moss that was taking them over. The smell hit them like a freight train, the being went unaffected by it yet it dug down Eddie’s through, acid fills his throat from the decay, the smell of pure rot, the haze of the smell cakes his clothes and skin.

  
“Stay with me Eddie...” The boy says, this would have given Eddie the adrenaline to run from how it knew his name but the pain kept building in his neck, it kept growing with each swaying step, it felt like his neck was breaking, ripping itself from his own body, his skin starts to stretch causing his muscles to strain, his spine and skull cracking apart. Eddie’s mouth hang open from his position of being held over the being’s shoulder, thick liquid rolls up his throat, he knew he was going to be sick but his stomach had nothing, what was inside him? What was struggling to crawl up, why was something chewing his insides, why was something chewing his organs, why was something leaking in his veins. The forest the being was taking him seems much too familiar, the panic rolling into his brain sending the mixing senses into overdrive, his muscles turn to jello, his eyes shutting and with a final huff his brain shut his body down only being conscious enough to feel the sway of walking sending him deep into unconsciousness.  
Eddie nearly screams when he feels the boy walking down something, voices twist in the air, no wait only two.. maybe more voices roll against the walls. His body shook with pure terror, time had lost all meaning, the boy sets him down in something.. something he felt safe in, something all too familiar.  
“We have an issue...” the boy who brought Eddie there murmurs, the two voices had stopped, Eddie began feeling hysterics tearing at his brain, he was going insane, thats it. He felt his mind leap to reasons why he was there, why he thought he was seeing this Alzheimer's disease, dementia or schizophrenia, hahah Im just going insane, thats it. Insane haha i have hallucinations, someone gave me LSD, I’m just high. Ha is this what people see when they take drugs?” His mind rockets these thoughts despite the conversation going on feet away from him.

  
“That boy will not believe us even if we tried, if anyone knows hes here.. he will get sent to.. he will get sent to Neibolt...” a voice, it was familiar yet it withheld a hallow edge but it seemed sad, did a love one die? Did one of the losers die?!

  
“You need to be the one to talk with him.. I will get the children... it’ll help him understand we dont wish him harm...” the first voice says with such a hushed tone it went nearly went unheard. The one who the sentence was directed to nods, he had to remember this wasnt a game. Eddie heard slow footsteps with a hushed breath, his neck refuses to let him look at who was approaching, a cold hand falls to his own.

  
“Hey....” the being says with such a dry throat and yet the sweet calming of it seems to lull him a bit, it swirls in his chest like a fresh gulp of air from being underwater much too long. The earthy ceiling was like a shield against whatever lay beyond its cover, the soft light glowing from an oil lamp nearby, the sweet action from whoever put their hand on his was all he needed at the moment.

  
Eddie’s head began to slowly dull in pain which allows his sight to clear up, the sight nearly made his throat stretch into a high, pitched scream that desperately claws at the soft, throat tissue. The face was a sickly pale, like a sugar skull with the lightest dust of death written all over the face, white-grey worms slide in and out of the skin, acting to be dolphins in the ocean, scars litter the pale lips, no wait.. stitches move like snakes as it opens its mouth to speak, but Eddie’s eyes reach its eyes and everything falls silent, more silent than the air had been above the earthy layer of shield above them. Dull, blue eyes look back, the kind of blue you would see when sinister clouds that threaten to downpour its tears upon the earth, look don through large, cracked glasses. A sweet feeling caressed the edge of his consciousness, the scent allowing his brain to slow in its panic, the face was soft and sincere, his mind told him this double wasnt a threat, this double wanted to help yet another though, one against the other words his thoughts spun into a web of worry. “He wants to earn your trust to kill you..” “they want to use you..” Eddie went against his better judgment, he took a second to compose himself. Suddenly his mind warps the face, the sweet face he wanted to have, not what he was seeing, not the fear that was rocking him into insanity, his eyes blown wide. Tears roll down his cheeks to see the horror infront of him, time had yet again lost all hope, it could have been a second or maybe a minute, but he saw the one thing that made every nerve inside him burst, a grim smile of blood stained teeth, the look of sadistic glee in pinprick eyes froze him in place, a butchers knife coated in crimson was dripping down his pale skin and faded shirt.

  
“Whoa whoa eds are you okay....?” The voice asks and the illusion disappears, Eddie looks down at his hands, his was shaking _there is no way this real...._. with that thought he starts bawling in the hammock, he was terrified, he wanted to go home and be safe with his friends, he wanted to wake up but this was much to real, he wanted to escape, the dread fills him like weights in his stomach when he quietly realizes he isn’t going to wake up safe in one of his friend’s arms, he wasn’t going to wake up in a warm bed. Rich looks down at the boy with his glazed over eyes filled with concern, just because he was crafted to scare he refused to do so. His movements were slow as was the rest of him, his arms dig under the boy’s body, he felt the boy tense up, stiff as a stick but relaxed when he felt the comforting actions that was being put upon him.

  
“Ive got you..” Rich murmurs despite the stitches that strain against his mouth to desperately keep him silent, his arms wrapped around the smaller boy, Eddie rests his head on Rich’s shoulder, finally giving into the cold hug. It wasn’t warm and as welcoming but it was needed, Eddie let himself go limp in the hammock with his upper half in a soft grip, the other being watched conflicted since the first boy left to find the children. Eddie let go of his captor who released his grip, the blue eyes he knew were tinged with grey and hazed over with a soft glaze like a doll’s glass eyes. Eddie stares at the black threads split at some and straining to keep the grayish lips closed, his eyes travel to the open cheeks that still had some white maggots thriving. He knew well enough it was meant to be comforting but the situation and world he was in cane to a crashing halt against him, like he was standing on train tracks with a Pere Marquette 2-8-4 locomotive driving down the tracks at top speed with no will to stop, the headlight gleaming like the sun in a bull’s eye upon seeing crimson. Eddie looks down at himself, his stomach rolls as his body shuts down on any logic, his mind control left and made it up as just a nightmare. _A silly, little, fake nightmare, ha none of this is real, it’s all in myhead, all made up like a fairy tale. Just a joke my mind is playing on me right?_ His eyes shine with that brightness of how it was only just a dream and he would wake up from the hellish thoughts of his consciousness.

"You with me eds-eddie?" Rich asks the threads growing a bit tighter with every word he spoke, Eddie could only nod, his body felt so exhausted.

“Children are here!!” A voice says coming down the ladder, Eddie looks at the yellow rain slicker, he knew he’d seen that somewhere. His heart nearly drops as he sees the being’s face, _he looks so much like Bill..._ Eddie nearly gasps when he realizes something, it was rather shocking when he realized who it was.

“Georgie..?” He barely gets our in his hushed tone, the boy looks at him with a smile. Georgie DenBrough stood at the base helping children down the ladder, some had missing limbs, missing flesh which only made Eddie’s stomach turn like butter in a barrel.   
  
Rich couldn’t help but smile at the kids, “PETER PAN!!” A few cheered seeing Rich’s lanky self leaned against the pole. Eddie rose an eyebrow in confusion but Rich suddenly sat on the edge of the hammock nearly throwing both of the off. Eddie held his tongue ready to fire off obscenities towards the boy but regarded against it since they did have a young crowd. Eddie looks at Rich, the similarities were frighteningly familiar yet strange at the same time, this Richie wasnt as gross or said any mom jokes or even let alone make a single virginity joke, or let alone talk in more than one sentence. 

A voice, one of the original three which Eddie had first heard, rose from the roof of the clubhouse, one Eddie knew well, a figure walks down talking "Sorry I thought I saw someone in the woods." his cheek had a postcard halfway through his face and the one of the sides poked out from above his eyebrow, just as if it was inside his face, but yet that wasnt the worst thing upon its face, no. This creature had headphones permanently sealed to its neck with the wire burning into its neck. 

"BennyBoy!" Georgie grins seeing the male, Eddie just stares in shock, this Ben didnt look at all as soft but ridged and cold, not at all welcoming, it was frightful no more of a nightmare coming to light. Rich looks at Eddie giving him a tap with a notion towards the children, they couldnt know this wasnt their Eddie, hell knows what could happen if the creator found out one is not who they seem.

"Read us a story!" The children complain, unaware if anything going on between the older males, Rich nods towards Haystack who turns to try and find a book even if the lantern's light was dim they could see very well. The dark atmosphere changes, Haystack looks back at Rich, Eddie, and Georgie, there wasnt that ridged cold in his eyes, no it was more of a human response to something scary, fear, no worry, maybe both. Rich stood up much quicker than his body was intended to do so which caused some cracking on his skin, Georgie had wide eyes in pure horror. Eddie looks between the three confused, his head tilted mirroring the ones of the children on the ground waiting for a story, but the atmosphere held secrets beyond knowledge, a thousand year old knowledge only trapped beneath ink written pages. 

"Where is the book?!" Georgie demands, panic had taken lace in his words, Rich had his fingers in his hair pulling a bit, this wasnt normal, he felt the fear eating at his stomach, his neck pain burn from the bruises upon them, this wasnt a dream, this wasnt a nightmare, this was real, this was true. Eddie reaches behind his shoulder with the opposite arm, his back was slick with blood, it had really happened, his back was still bleeding he had been bitten, he had been held down and something tried to break his neck. Panic set into his veins, his mind shutting down with the overdrive, his chest rose and fell in short and sharp wheezing, Rich looks at him and the blood stained on the hammock, the liquid pouring onto the boy’s shirt and shorts like a toddler who couldn’t keep all the Mac and cheese in its mouth.

"He wants to keep the story going, just keep looping it. He wants to take your place...it holds the secret of why we.. why the dead lights came to life... the stories in that book aren’t fake..that’s why they have to be read all the way or else it goes unfinished.." Haystack tells the frightened children who now start to panic, their world could keep going on and on without stopping, all they wanted to do was go home.

“If it goes unfinished the story will continue on and on... never ending...” Georgie mutters, if the book gets in the wrong hands... only hell knows what will happen to both worlds.

"What are you talking about... those stories are just fairy tales...?" Eddie says his voice trembling, his fears from when he was a kid with the window how he just thought it was all his imagination but everything was doubting every little thing he thought up about what lurks in the shadows. Georgie freezes and looks down at the floor in horrified shock.

No one moved, the question was normal, yet it sent chills down their spine. "Nobody ever told you the stories in Ye Old Tales were real..about what can happen??” The boy asks a little scared, Eddie shook his head all the while his heart began to pound in his chest,if those stories were truly real then why would they be written in a folklore book, wouldnt it be untrue? unreal? Just a made up story to scare kids from going out too late during Hallowseve or play certain games at certain times? 

  
“Wait... did he bite you?" one of the three boys asks as if the other statement didn’t matter in the slightest, but the boy in question remains unresponsive, Haystack looks at the others worried they just sent him into shock.

"Eddie......" Rich says the dawning realization falling over the small group, those words seem to truly shake the boys to the core. Eddie freezes, he had the same memory pop up, the one with the window, when he was five, _HIs teacher read a story about the "WIndow Seeker" from Ye Old Tales since it was only made up stories and it was in the spirit of the season, it was about a creature of blackness that begged for food but not by the front door, it would rap on the window of the child to beg for food, it would keep waking them up every night unless they gave it something to eat, after seven nights it would pry the window open and take the child away leaving the parents to be clueless and depressed by why their child would run away, His teacher hadn’t finished the story until the day after, the day after he heard something outside his window.._

"Eddie hey EDDIE!!" Georgie yells shaking the boy's shoulder's hard, Eddie looks at him or tried to, tears well up in his eyes. Haystack looks all around the clubhouse as if something else was there with him, Eddie pushes Georgie away to dash to the ladder, he scrambles out and just runs, despite Rich and Georgie yelling for him to stop but he couldnt, he needed to get home, he needed to get back to HIS friends.

Eddie didn’t stop running, he couldn’t, his body was pushing him as hard as it could. It wasn’t his fault he ran, his mind was taking over, all the stories he had been told were fake werent, everything his young, imaginative life had once been was crushed. It wasn’t right, why is he believing them? Why should he care if they THINK it’s real? His legs stop when he reaches the door, the calls had stopped and the world was dead silent. Soft mist is left on the ground like the rolling seas, the walls going unseen in the growing mist and darkness but he could smell it. The thick and sour smell of decay, one would smell if a body had been laying to bake under the sun, like a cake in the oven, the smell if one had forgotten milk on the counter for much too long, it reeks of rot. Everything around him smelled and felt like rot, the hammock he had been in felt slimy and dirty, the very doorknob he was turning had small bumps which by first touch only felt like flaws in the design but he knew better, it wasn’t flaws it was Stachybotrys, more commonly known as black mold. Eddie shivers with revulsion, vile threatening to climb up his trachea, the acid starting to boil his insides, a feeling washes over him as he opens the door to the Tozier’s doppelgänger house. The gut wrenching feeling of maggots thriving on his organs, the way they nibble upon the soft tissue that kept his fluids inside the organs being chewed through. A suffocating liquid rolls up from his stomach, it tasted like unsweetened black coffee sautéd in Mouse Wine with the texture of Casu Marzu. His body slowly burns gently with heat while his skin ripples with goosebumps, a fever spread out over his entire body with the pain of touching a hot iron. Every muscle repulsed with each step inside the house, the entire situation was dragging him down, why hadn’t he felt this earlier?? Was it there and he just hadn’t noticed? That’s when thick strands of black liquid drool over his shirt from his open mouth, he sees in horror that this wasn’t the first time, his shirt and pants were covered in the thick liquid that covered the inside of of his throat like webs. One thought did take place in his mind, the one thing Haystack said that registered with him _He Wants To Take Your Place_

Eddie slams the door behind him, making the frame groan like a wounded animal. His body was losing a war between hot and cold, feverish heat flowing in his veins while a winter chill grips his skin. The pain in his throat choking out his wheezing, the churning of his stomach forces him with every step to heave. How his body wanted to relieve itself of the pain, of the liquid, of the rot using his body as a host. It took longer, maybe a few minutes maybe not even a minute, could have been an hour for all he gave a fuck. He reaches the bathroom, the sickening smell of surströmming fills his nostrils only to char the inside of them, he knew he would never ever in a million years feel clean again, the dreadful liquid pouring out of his mouth like soda when interacted with mentos, the heat and chills becoming unbearable as he stopped dead to see his own reflection staring wide eyed at him. His eyes sketch the nightmarish sight infront of him, his polo ruined down the front by the staining liquid, his eyes had tears rolling down his face with a tint of black dye streaking behind in their wake. How his mouth would desperately try to scoff down air with failure, his chest heaving, begging to breath, all his childhood broken like one would find if they saw their parents putting an elf around the house as if it had been moving on it’s own like one small child would think or their parents hiding small, colorful shells around, all LIES, was his imaginary situations as a child real..? Were they all real? Was every made up monster he was told about real...? _Why me? Why do I have to suffer this fucking bullshit? Why can’t I wake up?!_

He couldn’t recognize himself in the mirror, the dark hair with curls chasing the ends, piercing blue eyes.. _Wait this isn-_ “RICHIE!!!” His voice causes black liquid to spurt over the sink and on the lower end of the mirror, the boy on the other side oblivious to him like it was a one way mirror, his brain only allowed him to come up with one thing to do. A loud and thundering noise claps from his fists being pounded against the glass, his knees upon the grimy sink counter, every slam of his fist sends chills down his spine. The mirror barley giving any sign of breaking or even bending against his fury at it, his thoughts uttering curses beyond imagine for his mouth which refused to allow a word past the black liquid barrier. 

“He cant hear you.... let’s get his attention shall we..?” A voice all too familiar growls from behind him, fingers curl around his neck without any time for his reaction.


End file.
